Chasing Shadows at Midnight and Darkness at Dawn
by PEANUT v1.2
Summary: While chasing shadows of the past, the looming shadow of the present threatens to take over. Can the shadows be outshone by the Light, or will they cover all Light in Darkness? Would the morning light ever shine again? RikuxOC story, #2 and #3 in series following The Approaching Night
1. Chapter 1: The New Normal

**Author's note: Hello readers! Welcome to Chasing Shadows at Midnight. (: This is a sequel to The Approaching Night, so if you haven't read that one, you need to go back and do that before getting too deep into this one. To those of you who had followed The Approaching Night, you know that I promised this story would come out by the end of the summer. I couldn't wait that long though; I'm pumped to get feedback on this story! I believe that it's darker and deeper than the previous story, which is why I upped the rating to "T" instead of "K+".**

**I believe that's all I have to say, except that I would love to get reviews on my work. It's super dooper encouraging. And if any of you are going back to read The Approaching Night before this one, feel free to review every chapter you read for that as well. If you're a fellow writer, you know how encouraging it is to get gobs of reviews from people who take your writing to heart.**

**This story picks up where the other story leaves off. So enjoy my Riku/OC fic and remember: I own nothing. Only my OC. (: **

Chapter One: The New Normal

"Stephanie Hope, get your butt out of bed."

I groaned, hearing the voice that wanted to call me out of my slumber. "You've gotta be kidding," I mumbled. It felt like it was so early; there was no way that it was time to get up now? Granted, I didn't get to sleep in much, but I had to savor whatever rest I could get.

"Nope, not kidding."

"Well neither am I," I retorted, rolling over on my bed while burying my face in my pillow. "I'm sleeping."

"C'mon, Steph, you know you gotta get up."

"Idunwanna…"

"Steph."

"Riku," I said firmly. I knew what he was thinking, because we went over this nearly every day. He didn't understand how I needed ten hours of sleep a night to feel rested, since he only required six tops. But he was a trained warrior—a Keyblade wielder. Me…I was just a princess who recently discovered her identity.

My name is Steph, and I am the princess of a land called Cadia. I always was, but you see, I didn't know it until about three months ago. Long story short, my life completely changed when I met Riku. And he found out I was a princess at the same time that I did, and ever since then, he had stuck by my side. He helped me when I was lost and ultimately helped me accept my title. I owe him more than I could ever repay him, but he doesn't care at all. He was sweet like that.

Now…We both lived in Cadia. I was receiving training to become the princess I need to be to support my people, and Riku's growing accustomed to life here. He's not just living here as some common citizen. He's a knight, ordained by my mother. And he's also the head of my security. Fortunately, he hasn't had to do anything yet with that job. Everything was peaceful here, finally.

"I didn't want to have to do this…"

"Do what?" I mumbled into the pillow.

Riku pulled the blankets off me, revealing my body that was clothed in a T-shirt and shorts. "This."

The young man reached down and grabbed my waist, holding on securely before he wiggled his fingers over my stomach. My eyes widened and I gripped my pillow the squeals immediately leaving me. I was the most ticklish person I knew, and Riku knew that as well. The uncontrollable giggles started coming, and I also started squirming to get out of Riku's grip. "Riku!" I squealed.

I heard him only laugh in amusement and continue the action. "Riku, stop!" I gasped through my laughter. "_Stop it_!"

"Only if you promise to get out of bed!" he said through his laughs.

"Okay, fine. _Fine_!" I cried. _Just stop already!_

Riku couldn't resist tickling me for a few more moments, but then he finally pulled back. My giggles ran off into heavy breathing, and I turned my head to the side on the pillow and looked at Riku, who looked like he was very satisfied with himself. And why wouldn't he be? He finally got me out of my groggy stupor and woke me up.

"Jerk," I said breathlessly.

He chuckled and gave me a cheesy smile, one that I loved seeing. Despite my slight anger at him, I smiled weakly at him. I sighed and pushed myself up into a sitting position while keeping my gaze on him, Riku.

Riku had changed since he first came to join me in Cadia. For one thing, he was eighteen now—an adult. I had always thought that he was mature, but he seemed even more mature to me now that I was constantly with him. He looked older as well, since he cut his hair to the length it used to be when he was fifteen. His silver locks were still ragged, but they were only down to his shoulders now. Plus, his bangs were shorter so I could see his beautiful aqua eyes. And I almost blushed a lot of the time when I looked at him, because his new clothes were more flattering for his buff figure. They were simple clothes—just jeans and a tight black shirt. But it looked really good on him.

"You're going to be late, you know. Mr. Bottomsworth isn't going to be pleased with you," Riku stated with a small smirk.

"Ugh. Mr. Butt…" I groaned, calling him by the name that Riku and I came up with for him. He was my tutor here. He was giving me history lessons on the kingdom of Cadia and the world in general. Riku also sat in on these sessions with me to learn more, and both of us found Mr. Bottomsworth to be a pain. He always acted like he was so scholarly, so intellectual. So above us. No, we weren't as smart or informed as him, but whatever.

"Class starts in twenty minutes."

"What?" I practically shrieked, looking at the clock on the wall. Sure enough, I had twenty minutes to get dressed and get to the room we had class in. So…fifteen minutes to get dressed and proper and five minutes to walk there. _I'm in trouble._ "Get out of here so I can get ready," I said to Riku, hopping out of bed.

"Aye aye, Your Majesty," Riku said with a smirk. He gave me a salute and then went to his adjoining bedroom to give me the privacy I needed. I heard his door shut as I rushed to the bathroom in our suite and jumped into the shower. I had to hurry; if I was late, I was sure that Mr. Bottomsworth would give me a serious lecture.

"_This is not fitting behavior for a princess,"_ he would say. _"A princess must always be on time, prepared, and be ready to grace the people with her presence. Oh, what's that? You forgot your notes again? Why am I not surprised. And to think that __**you'll **__be ruling the people someday…"_

I scoffed at my own imagination, though it did make me hurry with the shower. I really didn't like Mr. Bottomsworth, but my mother insisted that he had a good heart. He was just concerned about the kingdom of Cadia. After such a period of darkness under Olaf, he just wanted to make sure that Cadia had a good time. He came across a little…harsh, but he really did want what was best for Cadia and for the royal family.

I hopped out of the shower and got changed into jeans and a nice purple shirt before I returned to the bathroom and started drying the brunette hair that had gotten longer in the past few months. Now, it was down past my armpits. And I was letting my bangs grow out, too—they were too much of a hassle to deal with most of the time. Longer hair in general had advantages, since it was easy to throw up.

Grabbing a hold of the hairdryer, I got to work. I didn't have a clock in the bathroom, but I knew that my time was running short. No way was I going to be able to get my whole head dry in the few minutes that I had left.

I did manage to get a lot of it dry, though, when Riku tapped on the bathroom door and peeked his head in. "It's time," he said. _Already?_ I thought in panic, turning off the hairdryer.

"Okay. Give me a minute," I said as I brushed my hair and started putting it up.

"We don't have a minute."

I sighed and threw it up in a bun, my hands smoothing over the top of my head as I turned to look at Riku. "Why didn't you wake me up sooner?"

"Because you should know by now to set an alarm instead of trusting me to wake you."

"Mr. Bottomsworth is gonna kill me for not looking too presentable," I murmured, putting on a little bit of mascara to make up for my messy hair.

"He'll handle it. But c'mon, we've gotta go."

"Okay, okay," I said in submission. I walked past him into my large bedroom, seeing my normal black flip-flops by my dresser. I slid those on and then Riku and I both started to class.

Riku and I walked side-by-side through the halls, this being our normal routine. Class was every week day at eight in the morning, and that always lasted until lunchtime. After we got a quick lunch, I would receive training for either archery and magic or "princess lessons". The first was fun, and fortunately for me, that was what class I was having today. Princess lessons…That one wasn't too bad, but it did make me feel pressured a lot of the time. I had a long way to go before I was a princess capable of leading her people.

Heck, I didn't even** know **these people. I spent my life in Twilight Town up until two or three months ago, when I found I that I belonged in Cadia. It was going to be really hard to get to know these people well enough to rule them, but what other choice did I have? I was a princess, and giving up the throne now wasn't an option. There were always other people in line for the throne, but this position was one that I was meant to have. And after all the hard work to train me, I couldn't just say I wasn't interested.

This was my destiny.

The two of us walked into the classroom, and I automatically looked up at the clock. Darn, two minutes late. And Mr. Bottomsworth is already here… He was up at the board, drawing a map.

"You're late again, Princess," he said without turning around.

"Sorry, sir," I mumbled, like I did every time I came in late. I sat down at one of two desks while Riku took the other.

"Sorry isn't going to cut it when you're queen, Majesty."

_I know,_ I thought, looking down at my desk. _I hear it all the time, Mr. Bottomsworth. But I can't be perfect, no matter how badly you or anybody else wants me to be flawless._

"Now, today's lesson is a brief recap of the history we've already gone over and the start of studying of other people groups," the teacher began. "As we've already established, not only is this kingdom called "Cadia", but that is what the world is called as well. Many kingdoms used to exist here, but now they are minor provinces compared to Cadia. Too small to be real kingdoms, they have moved to be under Queen Andrea's just rule.

"The past hundred years have been peaceful, even if Queen Andrea has only been ruling for the past twenty-some years. Aside from the trouble with the sorceress-and never trust a sorceress, Stephanie—there have been a few scuffles. While Cadia is all one large continent and several island chains, there are several ethnicities of people here. The Tylinians live here-" He pointed to a spot on the map. "—And they are a very proud people. But they also thirst for power, which is why they've tried taking advantage of other people groups."

Riku spoke up. "Sir, is that the group of people that King Olaf and his brothers were from?"

"Correct," Mr. Bottomsworth said. "The Tylinians…Stephanie, do you need me to spell that out for you?" he asked as he turned around. "Oh wait, you don't have your notebook."

_**CRAP!**_ I thought in panic, glancing down at the desk. I forgot it again!

"Yes she does, sir," Riku said, setting it on my desk along with a pencil. "I was holding it for her on the way here and forgot to give it back. Sorry, Princess."

Mr. Bottomsworth accepted the excuse and turned back to the board, spelling out the name of the people group for me. But I wasn't writing it down just yet. I opened the book and looked over to Riku, a weak smile on my face. _"My hero,"_ I silently mouthed. He saved me from getting in trouble again.

Riku only winked at me before he opened up his notes and started writing, his actions advising me to do the same. I did just that, knowing that I needed to bet on Mr. Butt's good side _sometime_. He would grow to love me eventually, or so I hoped. I hated it when people didn't like me.

But as long as I had the mentality to call him "Mr. Butt", I knew our relationship as student and teacher wouldn't be improving anytime soon.

"As I was saying, the Tylinians aren't just a threat because of their thirst for power. They have a temper, and both those features make them susceptible to the Darkness. But the people have come a long way in the past two hundred years. The Tylinians are very devoted people, and once they have a cause, they are faithful to it until the very end. Thankfully, most Tylinians have been strong supporters of the rulers of the Light. Except for a few, obviously."

"King Olaf and his brothers," Riku said with bitterness.

"You mean King Olaf and his brother, singular, Riku," Mr. Bottomsworth said. "Olaf and Tristan were wicked until the end, yes, but Gregory has repented of his past ways and proven that he has had a change of heart."

Riku didn't say anything. I already knew how he felt about Gregory—He believed he was still a threat and we shouldn't trust him. But he was the only person that held that view, which I thought was ironic. Riku himself had a bad past that he was forgiven of…Why couldn't he do the same for Gregory?

"Anyway, the Tylinians are well monitored, as are the other peoples in the kingdom. Cadia is not just a kingdom to serve those in the main area, but all people. And as long as there is somebody with a strong will, determination, and love for her people on the throne, then the kingdom should be fine." He gave me a look, and I wanted to just sink into my seat. _So much pressure…_

The rest of the lesson was boring, and I barely paid attention to it. That was probably another reason that Mr. Butt didn't like me—I wasn't the best student in his class. Back in high school, I used to do so good in school, too. But all of this stuff about Cadia and kingdoms…it was all brand new, and I had no basis to start from. And besides, I never did like history.

I let my thoughts wander to the boy beside me again. Or rather, what his opinion was of Gregory. Gregory was the brother of King Olaf and Tristan, and he had been a part of the original coup to overthrow my parents. But when I returned, he saw the error in his ways and repented. Gregory was welcomed back into the kingdom and thanked for his work to set things , he was continuing to set things right by working in the castle. He was a part of the guard. Now granted, his position wasn't that high. But he did have almost full access to the castle and to the queen's resources, just like any other member of the guard. The members of the royal guard were people that Queen Andrea trusted with her life.

Riku had insisted to her at the start that she was wrong to trust Gregory. But Gregory has proven himself in the eyes of Queen Andrea…and me. We had a small uprising about a month and a half ago—The people were panicking about a potential return of Sorceress Isabella. Gregory and a few others went and spoke to the whole kingdom on my mom's behalf and told them the fate of Sorceress Isabella and her followers: They were killed. So, there was no need to worry about any of those dark people returning again to try and take over Cadia.

And of course, Gregory continues to prove himself to me every day when I see him and his smile. He is truly happier now that he is in the Light. I can tell that he isn't the same man he was when he was working with his brothers. I just wished Riku would have been convinced of that.

"That's it for today's lesson," Mr. Bottomsworth said after a while, closing the book he now held in his hands. I blinked and looked down at the notes I had been taking half-consciously. They actually weren't too bad, much to my surprise and pleasure. "I'll see you tomorrow, promptly at eight, if your Majesty can pull yourself together by then." He gave me a look and then turned around to the board and erased everything he had on there. "Dismissed."

I held back a sigh and closed my notebook. Riku and I both rose out of our seats and exited the room, entering the hall and going our normal route to the dining area where the cooks always had lunch already prepared for us. The delicious food of Chef Jack always brightened my mood after class. And the class I had after lunch always made me happy too: It was archery and magic class. Now, I never did like battle—I always just did whatever was necessary to protect myself. But…I liked feeling powerful. I liked being able to defend myself better and be a strong enough ruler that my people could depend on me as a strong leader.

In a way, I did wish that I fought with a sword still. But it wasn't lady-like for a female to get close enough to a battle to use a sword. No, a princess—who would eventually become queen—was expected to lead her troops to battle but then linger with the archers. It was less probably that the noblewoman would die, then. And I most certainly didn't want to die.

But I didn't have much reason to worry about war right now anyway. The last war that was led by a queen was so long ago in history that nobody seriously thought of sending me onto the battle field.

"Steph? Hey, what's wrong?" Riku asked softly as we turned.

"Hm?" I hummed in question.

"We've been walking for five minutes and you haven't said a word."

"Oh…I'm just thinking about stuff, that's all," I said softly.

"You've been thinking too much lately. You seem pretty down about whatever it is you're always thinking about."

I couldn't help but smile weakly. "Bold as always, Riku," I mumbled.

"I have to be bold to drag stuff out of you, dummy," Riku said lightly, nudging me with his elbow. "So, what's going on? Do I have to keep prodding, or are you gonna finally crack?"

"I think for now, I'll choose the third option: Go to lunch, archery class, dinner, and then hang out with my mom if she has time."

Riku sighed. "Will you tell me later, then? I don't like being left in the dark."

"If I ever have a moment to breathe and sit down with you, yeah," I said as I fiddled with my brunette hair. Things were hectic. But worse than that, Riku and I never had any real privacy. And why would we ever need privacy, anyway? It wasn't like we were in a relationship…As far as people knew. My mother made it clear I needed to marry nobility, so Riku was out of the question. But I still had feelings for him, so for now, we would just have to keep those feelings a secret. If we were meant to be together, it would work out.

We entered the dining room and saw two servings of lunch already set on the table. It was homemade chicken-noodle soup, one of my favorites. I smiled and looked around for Chef Jack to thank him, but then I saw the note on the table.

"_Sorry I can't be there to say hello to you two, but the kitchen is shorthanded today and I need to work through your lunch. Hope you two enjoy it!  
>Love,<br>Chef Jack"_

I smiled, practically able to hear Chef Jack's voice through the note. He was a terrific guy. He was a family man who had a great sense of humor, and a great ability to make food.

"Gotta love Chef Jack," Riku said, reading my thoughts as we both sat down at the table.

"Yup," I agreed with a smile.

Both of us dug into the soup, knowing that we didn't have much time to sit and talk. And this wasn't the place, anyway. Both of us were good at hiding our feelings for each other by now. I felt bad that I was lying to my mother by acting like nothing was going on with me and Riku, but what other choice did we have?

We were quiet as we ate, though I felt Riku's gaze on me a few times. He was worried, but there was no reason for him to be that way. I was just thinking about princess stuff, like I always was.

Well, I was thinking about it until I heard a sudden boom. I started at the boom and glanced out the window, seeing the rain suddenly start pouring and the sky flash with lightning. "Oh no, you gotta be kidding me," I groaned. I was supposed to have archery lessons outside! And magic lessons too!

"Guess class is cancelled for today, huh?" Riku guessed softly.

"No…Mrs. Huck will probably give me textbooks to read all day," I said with a sigh.

And that was exactly what happened. After lunch, Riku and I went to meet my teacher Mrs. Huck to figure out what was going on. Obviously we couldn't do archery when the weather was so bad, so she wanted me to read a book about magic instead. I took the book back to my room and read for a few hours before I eventually fell asleep in the middle of the dry book.

Riku woke me up for dinner, and I groggily ate my food. I woke up a little by the end of it as I prepared to possibly see my mom, but it turned out that she was too busy to spend time with me tonight. She was very, very sorry, but I understood. She had a duty to her kingdom.

After the meal was done, Riku and I returned to my suite. We both sat down on the couch, a remote in his hand and a book in mine. This wasn't unusual for us to do this whenever we had a calm night. He would watch TV and keep it on mute as I read whatever textbooks I needed to read for my classes. I envied Riku in a way; he had no real pressures. His duty was to protect me, and there was no danger to protect me from. He could do whatever he pleased while I was kept on a tight schedule.

Eventually, my book became too boring to hold my attention. And Riku and I were already sitting close, so it was easy for me to lean my head to the side and rest it on his strong shoulder. I told myself I was just going to rest for a moment, but Riku and I both knew that I was going to fall asleep soon enough. I was pretty predictable when it came to my exhaustion.

I fell asleep within a few minutes, and Riku left me be. He'd probably lay me down in bed when he was sure that I was sound asleep so that I could get the best rest I could. That..and it was risky for us to be intimate for too long. Somebody was sure to walk in on us. That was a normal fear for us, just like my routine was now normal for both of us. There were some things we just did, whether we liked them or not.

This was the new normal.


	2. Chapter 2: Princess

**Author's note: Glad to see people found the story! (: Thanks for reviews from Kate7950, BookGal26, Naivette, Luthien Eriol, Supa Supa Bad Truly Mad Moves, watev, and Redeeming Endeavor. And thanks to watev for pointing out that the story was previously labeled as being Spanish; I hadn't noticed that!**

**SSBTMM, I'm sorry I lost track of your story. :/ I had a hectic summer and could only focus on my writing for the most part, not other fics. If I ever have a lot of time on my hands, perhaps I'll catch up on it. **

**Back to my story, this chapter was LOADS of fun to write. I think later on, you Disney fans will see why. :3 So I won't keep you from it. Enjoy the chapter!**

Chapter Two: Princess

The bed was as soft as a cloud—or rather, what people imagined a cloud to be, since clouds weren't really solid. Regardless, my bed felt like heaven to me, as it did every morning as I was just starting to wake up. I just wanted to stay here and feel weightless, safe. At peace. But if I was actually waking up on my own, then I at least needed to check on the time to see how much longer I could rest before class. I couldn't doze off again in Mr. Bottomsworth's class or else I would have been in serious trouble.

I sighed and rolled over to the side, peeking open my eyes and looking at the clock beside my bed_. 8:39. It's only 8:39. _

I closed my eyes again to sleep.

But after a few seconds, my eyes opened wide and I bolted up in bed. "Eight thirty-nine. I'm forty minutes late for class!" Mr. Bottomsworth was going to kill me! I looked at the clock one more time to make sure I wasn't hallucinating, and unfortunately, I wasn't. _Crap!_ I squealed and pushed myself out of bed. But the movement was too quick; I immediately got lightheaded and fell down to my knees._ Get up. Get up! _

I lifted a hand to my head and closed my eyes, focusing on my breathing as I waited for the vision to come back. I didn't have time for this! I had to get to class!

"Steph? What's wrong?"

I opened my eyes, and eventually, the black faded away and I saw the person kneeling right in front of me and staring at me in concern. Riku.

"What's wrong is that you didn't wake me for class, Riku! Do you know how bad this is?"

"Hold on, I'll explain…"

"Mr. Bottomsworth was already ticked at me yesterday; he's gonna kill me for being late today-"

"…First tell me why you're holding your head."

"—He hates it when I'm **one minute** late, Riku! And today I'm going to be almost an hour late!"

"…Did you hit your head or something? Is that why you're holding it-?"

"Would you just shut up about my head already!" I exclaimed in frustration. "I only got lightheaded because I jumped out of bed, and now I'm panicking because of class, which is a bigger deal than anything!"

"You should have your alarm set for class," he piped, though his expression now showed amusement instead of concern. I only got lightheaded from jumping out of bed? He thought this was a joke!

"Shut up, Riku! Let's go, we've gotta get to class!" I started to get up, but Riku set his hands on my shoulders and kept me down. "What? Why aren't you letting me go?"

"Because, you're kinda cute when you're panicking," Riku said with a slight smirk.

"_Riku!"_

"And because Mr. Bottomsworth called and said that he was feeling sick. Class is cancelled."

That finally got me to shut up. I looked at him blankly as he kept his hands on my shoulders and stared at me in amusement. "You're kidding."

"Nope."

_He's not kidding…I…I'm not in trouble with Mr. Bottomsworth…_ I sighed and lowered my head, closing my eyes. "You couldn't' have told me that two minutes ago?" I mumbled, slightly irked. I nearly had a heart attack!

"Well like I said, you're kinda cute when you're panicking."

"Jerk," I murmured halfheartedly. What he did was funny, and I'd surely laugh about it later, but it was too early for him to joke around like that. _Not cool, dude…_

Riku laughed softly and lifted a hand to tuck back my messy, dirty brown hair. The movement was so gentle, his fingertips running over the smooth skin of my face as he tucked the hair behind my ear. It was risky for us to ever be affectionate, but how could I be mad at him when he was so sweet, so…cute? It was a side of him that apparently hadn't existed before he met me.

I opened my light blue eyes and looked at him, seeing his aqua eyes lock onto mine as soon as they could. And just because of the look in those gorgeous eyes, I couldn't help but smile softly. Riku…I really cared for him. We met months ago and started as friends, but I knew we liked each other very early on. And those feelings had only grown since the day we met in Twilight Town.

"So…what does this mean for the rest of the day?" I asked as I looked to him.

"Well, the afternoon's free too. Your mom's having a meeting with your tutors and teachers to see how you're doing."

"No pressure on me or anything…" I mumbled sarcastically. If any teacher said I was doing badly, I'd probably be in trouble. At least, that was what I figured.

"You're right, no pressure," Riku said in seriousness. "She'll be on your side any day, even if a teacher says your doing bad. She'll blame the teacher."

"Hope you're right."

"I am right. But anyway, we have the day off. What do you wanna do?"

"I can guess what you wanna do," I said, giving him a knowing look. He brought something up almost every time we were alone, and while it was surprising at first, now I was used to it. We didn't have much time alone, and whenever we did, he just wanted to cuddle. Big, strong, stoic Riku wanted to cuddle! The first time he asked, I thought it was a joke. But then, he explained that he had never been as close to somebody like he was with me, and he wanted to hold me even if he appeared to be sissy.

That was unbelievably cute in my eyes. Riku may have been inexperienced with romance, but he was sincere enough to follow his heart.

"Aw, c'mon, don't act like you don't want to too…"

"Riku, I want to_ do_ something," I whined. "Something that I actually get to choose to do."

"Like cuddling?"

I lifted a hand and lightly whacked his arm, though it was an affectionate hit. "Shut it, you."

"Sorry. What do YOU want to do?"

A smirk appeared on my lips. "I wanna go take a walk around Cadia."

"…"

The silence wasn't encouraging at all, especially sicne I was serious. I hadn't actually been in the town right outside the kingdom before; I had been too busy training to be a princess. That was torture. "C'mon, Riku! I'm sick of seeing pictures of the kingdom in textbooks. I wanna go see it for myself…I wanna see the kingdom that I'm supposed to rule one day."

"…You know you shouldn't be out without a few escorts. Your presence could stir up a lot, whether that's good or bad."

"Nobody will know who I am, and you'll be there with me. Come on, Riku. Please…?" I batted my blue eyes at him, begging him to say yes. There was a change in his eyes then, softness appearing at my pleading. He would give in.

"…Fine. Let's go."

"That's a good Riku," I said, smiling as I leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the cheek.

"'A good Riku'?" What am I, a dog?"

"Well, you stick to my side like one," I smirked.

"Woof woof," he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes as I started laughing. He wasn't goofy too often, but I loved it when he was. Because even if he didn't smile twenty-four seven, his goofiness was a way of me seeing that he was happy. And that was all that I really wanted for him.

"C'mon, Rover, let's go get ready and head out. It's gonna be a fun day."

*…*…*…*…*…*

"Wow," I whispered in awe. This was…incredible. I looked around the calm, town-like area outside the castle. It was a cross between a town and a city, the area having tall buildings and being crowded, but having a gentle, non-rushed aura in the air. I liked it a lot, and we had just arrived here.

I stepped forward and immediately felt a hand grab my arm and tug me back.

"No leaving my side, remember?" Riku said lowly in my ear.

"Aye aye, chief," I said, rolling my eyes. It's not like anybody was going to recognize us. It was raining out, so we had the hoods of our sweatshirts covering our heads. And in our jeans and sneakers, we looked just like everyone else who was walking around. We fit right in.

"I'm serious, Steph. If people realize there's a princess here, there's no telling how they react."

"At least I'm smart enough not to say that sentence aloud," I hissed.

Riku gave me a look, still gripping my arm. "What's making you so grumpy?"

_You are,_ I thought, faintly shaking my head. "Nothing," I lied. _You're just being way too protective. In case you don't remember, I lived seventeen and a half years without a body guard. I survived just then, and I'll survive just fine now._

"Right," Riku said in disbelief. "Well, we'd better get moving, or we'll stand out."

"You're the one holding me in place."

Riku gave me yet another look, the same one as before. And it was asking the same question. _What's up with you? _

I sighed, shaking my head again as I looked to the ground. "Look," I said softly. "I just wanna be normal again for one day, but I can't do that when you're being so protective. "

At last, Riku seemed to understand what I was saying and accept it. "Okay, sorry. So for today, I'll be your overprotective boyfriend instead of your overprotective bodyguard, okay?"

Riku's words finally drew a smile out of me as I wrapped an arm around his lower back. "You already are my overprotective boyfriend; just lose the bodyguard thing. There's no danger here."

"You know I'll disagree with the last part, but okay. I'll tone it down."

"Thanks."

"Mm."

"Okay, now that I know you're going to behave…" I said with a smirk, excitement coming through in my voice. "Let's go check everything out!"

Riku laughed at my excitement, but I didn't care. I smiled like a child and moved my hand to hold onto his as I dragged him down the street. There was so much to see, so much to do! I gripped his hand and dragged him along the streets with me, ignoring the light rain that was falling from the sky. No rain could damper my spirits today, nor could Riku's over-protective nature.

There were people on the sidewalks and streets, all of them laughing and smiling and enjoying the town even if the weather wasn't the best. Everyone was so…happy. I hadn't imagined a place like this could exist, where everyone was so joyful.

"Don't look so excited, Steph," Riku mumbled to me as we passed a shop. I looked over at him and smiled sheepishly at his sarcasm. I was so clearly excited that I must have stood out amongst everyone else here, but how could I help it? This was just so incredible! My home…I never imagined it would be such a utopia.

"How can you **not **be excited, Riku? This place is amazing!"

Riku only chuckled.

"You know what? Fine. I'll be excited enough for the both of us."

"Did I say I wasn't excited?" Riku asked with an arched brow.

"No, but actions speak louder than words sometimes."

"You mean** all **the time," he corrected.

"Whatever."

Riku smiled, shaking his head as he squeezed my hand. "I'm excited, really. And…It makes me happy, to see you so happy again. I don't think I've ever seen you so joyful."

I smiled weakly, but a bit sadly at the same time. "Well, I haven't had much reason to be happy since we met," I stated softly. When Riku met me, my life started going downhill. The Darkness attacked my world and even though Riku was able to take me to safety, he eventually had to leave me alone. That was when I got kidnapped. And through that, I found out my true identity. And while I was glad for that, this was still a hard path to walk now. But…I was doing my best.

"I'm going to give you a lot more reasons to smile, I hope," Riku said softly, bringing me back to the current moment.

"You already have," I assured him quietly, smiling over at him and squeezing the hand I held. I owed him for more than him saving my life; he also gave me the courage to face the new day. If he could do it, even after all that he had been through and seen, then I could do it too. I was sure of it. "…But if you buy me a thingamabob today, that would be pretty sweet too," I said, grinning as I stopped at one of the stands on the sidewalk. There were so many things they were selling, but I had no idea what they were.

"Thingamabob?" Riku repeated as he stopped next to me, making fun of my word choice.

"Aw, c'mon Riku. Look at this stuff! There are who's-its and what's-its galore!"

"Looks more like gadgets and gizmos a plenty to me," Riku said with a smirk. "Don't you have enough treasures in your trove?"

"'Trove'?" I repeated. "You can make fun of my word choice, but then you say silly stuff like that and expect me not to say anything?"

"Alright, alright. You win this round," Riku said in submission, though his smirk remained.

"Victory is mine!"

"C'mon, weirdo, let's keep going. You've already got twenty thingamabobs."

"Fine," I sighed.

We started walking again, and I let my eyes wander all across the area. There were so many things to see here! A few months ago, I had never been on another world. Twilight Town was the only home that I remembered, and that world was honestly pretty boring. This one was anything but that. There were people everywhere, smiling and laughing. And the stores all over the streets!

I hummed in awe and suddenly stopped at one of the stands, forcing Riku to stop as well. What cute stuffed animals!

"Never knew you were one for stuffed animals," Riku murmured.

"Some things you never outgrow," I confessed sheepishly, eyeing the tiger doll. Reaching forward gently, I pulled at the tag on its ear and read its name. "'Rajah'?" I said with an arched brow. What kind of a name was that?

"Well, this one is weirder still," Riku said, looking at the small red dragon doll. "'Mushu'?"

_Such a weird name,_ I thought, laughing softly. _Rajah and Mushu at the same shop? They're a dragon and a tiger; they're worlds apart! _But this was a street shop, so they could sell whatever they wanted to. I wasn't here to buy anything anyway; it wasn't like I had any money on me.

Riku must have been thinking the same thing, because he grasped my hand more tightly and started leading me down the path again. But things didn't quite going according to plan. "Oh!"

I stepped out of my shoe and held out my hands to catch myself since I was falling, but Riku was suddenly right in front of me to catch me. _That's embarrassing…_I thought, blushing as I looked up at him. Why was I so uncoordinated?

"Klutz," Riku smirked, letting me go as soon as he saw that I was balanced.

"You're the one who forced me to lose my shoe, Romeo."

"Who needs shoes anyway?"

I raised my hand. _I do._

"You better just be glad you don't have to wear a glass slipper or anything," Riku stated. "You'd break it somehow, with your luck."

"Glass slipper?" _Where'd you come up with a weird idea like that? Wearing glass shoes would be stupid…_

"You're making fun of my word choice again? Ouch."

"You're the one saying crazy things," I reminded him.

"To humor you, and make you stop blushing out of embarrassment."

And, of course, I started blushing at that. _Not cool, Riku. I can't help it if I'm not smooth on my feet like you are!_

Riku kindly let the topic go, and we kept our eyes out on the other shops that we passed. I was tempted to stop at the book store, but I had no time to read books anyway. And no money; I couldn't forget that. I sadly let the book store fade into the distance as I looked around, staring through a glass window to a sewing shop. Just as we passed by, a girl pricked herself on the spinning wheel's spindle.

I turned my head to look at the other side of the street to avoid seeing any blood, and I had to do a double take. A girl over there had such long blonde hair that girls were jump-roping with it to braid it! "Wow," I whispered.

The leaves blew in the wind past my face, blowing my brunette hair as I turned my head to follow the movement with my eyes. However, I was distracted when I saw something hopping down the path. A little frog.

"What's this?" I asked, laughing. A frog, in the middle of the city? He was just staring at me, too, almost as if he expected me to pick him up and kiss him. _Sorry, but you're no Prince Charming._

Riku and I walked away from the frog, and it was then that I noticed it was only drizzling rain. I took off the hood on my sweatshirt and looked over at my boyfriend, who was looking elsewhere.

"I'm gonna go buy an apple, okay? Be right back." He squeezed my hand and started over towards the shop, where there was a pretty long line of people waiting to buy things. And of course, I didn't want to just stand where I was and look like an idiot waiting for him. I looked around the area and saw another path, and that instantly sparked my curiosity. Where did it lead? I glanced at Riku before I started towards it, turning left to walk down the alleyway.

Well, this is boring, I thought, looking at the tan brick walls on either side of me as I walked. There was nothing here…Nothing at all.

I sighed and turned around to head back the way that I came, but I stopped short when I heard a voice.

"Pretty girls like you shouldn't travel down dark alleys like this alone."

I turned my head and saw two boys coming the way that I came—they were just teenagers, but their body language told me that they meant trouble.

"The alley isn't that dark," I said smartly, standing my ground. "It's the middle of the day, in case you didn't notice.

"Sassy." This voice came from my opposite side, and I turned my head to see another boy coming from the opposite side of the alley. If I chose to leave, then both directions would be blocked. _Terrific. _

"I have the right to walk wherever I want to," I continued, curling my hands into fists as I looked at the boys that kept getting closer to me on both sides. No way was I going to be a coward. I'd never had a boy threaten me before, but I knew how to defend myself whether that came through verbal comments or fighting. I just hoped that I wouldn't have to resort to the latter, since I still hated violence. I always would.

"And we have the right to walk with you wherever we want," the leader-like boy said with a smirk. "Come with us."

"No thanks. I've got places to go, people to see. And some creeps to get away from."

"Funny…I don't remember giving you a choice."

"What's funny is that I don't remember giving you the authority to make decisions for me," I said smoothly.

"Why are you talking like that? Like you're above the rest of us?" the boy asked with an arched brow, him and his friends stopping just a few feet away from me on both sides of me. "That's really not polite, you know."

"I'm not talking like I'm above you!" I spat. I couldn't be…I mean, I was a princess, but I wasn't letting it get to my head, right? That was the last thing that I wanted. I liked me the way that I was and I wanted it to stay that way. But if I was bossy, rude, or arrogant, then I would seriously start hating myself. I never wanted to become that way.

"You are, but I'm willing to let it go if you hang out with us for the day. What's your name?"

I didn't respond.

"Now that's just plain rude," he said, stepping closer to me. This time, I backed up a few steps. But when I felt my back pressed against the wall, I nearly swore under my breath. If I wasn't in a bad enough position before, I was now. "C'mon, at least give me a name, beautiful," he said, stopping right in front of me and lifting a hand to my cheek.

"Buzz off."

"A name is all I want."

"Liar," I spat. He wanted much more than that.

The jerk laughed. "Maybe. I guess a name isn't that important, I guess. As long as you come with us." He reached down and grabbed my arm, and for the first time, I felt nervous. "Come on, let's-"

Somebody entered the alley while we were all distracted, and that person interrupted the creep before he could finish his sentence. The tall figure grabbed the back of his shirt and tore him away from me, the hand leaving my cheek and my arm. The punk hit the wall behind him roughly, but not roughly enough that he fell down to the ground.

The other person moved to stand by my side, and I looked up to see the angered expression on his face. "Riku…"

"Hey! What was that for?" the punk cried, standing by his buddies and glaring at Riku.

"She said to buzz off," Riku growled.

"We were just becoming friends; you're overreacting," the kid said.

Riku ignored him, flexing his jaw and his fists before he looked back to me. "C'mon, we're going back to the castle."

"Castle?" one of the kids blurted.

_Riku…_I thought in disbelief. He was the one who wanted to keep my identity a secret, but who else lived in the castle except…

"You're the princess!" the creep cried. "Crap, why didn't you say something?"

I saw Riku take a step forward to beat them all up for my sake, but I reached over and grabbed his arm to keep him back. I didn't have to hold him long, considering that the three punks all ran off so that they wouldn't get into trouble. They…were scared. They thought that I would send them to jail or something for harassing me, even if I didn't wear my identity on my sleeve.

_What a mess…_

Riku glared after the teens, but he didn't dare leave me alone. Instead, he forced me to release my arm as he grabbed mine instead. He started dragging me out of the alley in silence, and I knew what he was thinking. "Riku…wait…"

He kept walking, pulling me out of the alley as we started back the direction that we originally came from that day. He was going to let this ruin everything! Our whole day was ruined because of those punks…I was willing to overlook it, but clearly Riku wasn't. Now he was in "over-protective-body-guard" mode. "Riku."

"Don't bother. I knew coming out here was a bad idea."

"You're wrong!"

"The punk had his hand on your cheek!" he hissed, glaring over at me before he looked ahead again.

"I was about to push him off…"

"And what would have happened then, huh? That would have encouraged his buddies to move in and do the same thing. I know how guys think, Steph. That could have gotten really bad."

"But it didn't, so let's not let it ruin our whole day, okay?"

"No. I'm calling the shots now. And we're going home."

"Riku!"

I continued to protest his actions for the next few minutes, but then I realized that I wasn't going to get through to him. I zipped my lips shut and we both walked in silence the rest of the way to the castle. It was only an hour or two since we left, so we had the rest of the day to consider, but I knew Riku would be sour the whole day.

My eyebrows furrowed as I looked over at the ground. I didn't want to go back; I wanted to make today special. But it wasn't going to happen.

_So much for today actually turning out to be a good day. _


	3. Chapter 3: Birthday

**Author's notes: Thanks for the reviews last time, SSBTMM, Eddie Camp, Luthien Eriol, Naivette, and Kate7950. I have a reason for the last chapter being full of Disney references, but mostly I thought it'd be fun to do a shout-out to all the Disney princess movies. I didn't mean for Steph to come off Rapunzel-ish by having never left the castle, but oh well. :P Take things however you want; I do want you guys digging deep in the story and analyzing a lot. Analyze who you think the villains may be or who Steph's strongest allies will be. No, we're not that deep in the story yet, but the pace from here is going to pick up a little as we get launched into the main plot. (: **

**Yes, this chapter is coming out earlier than I expected it to. I'm so far ahead I can't resist posting it. So be sure to thank me with tons of reviews! :P **

Chapter Three: Birthday

I laughed at a joke my mother told me as we entered the castle, shopping bags on our arms as we were greeted by the castle guards. The two of us had just gotten back from shopping in town, and I had to say that it was **incredible**. We didn't even have guards with us to keep us safe; not even Riku came along. It seemed risky at first, but then my mom explained that we were going to a district that had the shops closed off to normal customers so that we could shop in peace.

"Sneaking into that one shop was amazing," I said, giggling at the memory. We didn't let any townspeople recognize us, so we were sneaking around the area. One time, we were almost caught, but then we hid behind a dumpster. And after that, we crawled to get to the store unseen! It was hilarious.

"I don't remember the last time I did something so reckless!" my mother, Queen Andrea, laughed. "I know that everyone was against us going out on our own, but we'll have to do this again sometime."

"We will, if they let us," I agreed.

"Hey. I'm the Queen! I can find a way to make it happen," she said, sending a wink my way. I grinned and nodded at her expression, the forty year old mother looking like an excited child to me. She looked good for her age, and she was gorgeous with her long blonde hair and slim figure. And those bright blue eyes…I had the same ones. I was proud to have the same features as somebody I looked up to so much.

"Good evening, Highnesses."

My mom and I both stopped walking, seeing the man who was standing a few feet away. "Hey Gregory," I greeted with a smile. It had been a while since I saw him, even if he lived in this castle as a part of the security detail. Riku tried to keep it that way, but he didn't have to try too hard since my schedule was so busy anyway. But despite Riku's impression of Gregory, I liked the man. He truly was a friend.

"Happy Birthday, Your Majesty," Gregory said warmly to me.

"Aw, thank you!"

"Eighteen, huh? It must be fun, having an excuse to leave the castle without any guard."

"Well, that's the only reason they let us go," I said sweetly. Normally, everyone was so suffocating. Especially-

"Not without hesitation," Gregory said, interrupting my thoughts. "Especially Riku. He's been pacing around the castle all afternoon. You should go let him know you're back."

Riku…He** would** worry like that. He had been on edge ever since that day we went to town and were confronted by those punks. But at least he didn't tell anybody about what happened; I was grateful for that. "You know where he is? I'll go find him now."

"I believe he's in your suite."

"That's good," Queen Andrea said, speaking for the first time in a while. "You need to head back and get ready for the rest of the night anyway. Do you want me to send Susana to do your hair?"

At the thought of the maidservant, I shook my head. "No thanks; I'll do it myself." I was perfectly capable, and besides, I didn't want to waste Susana's time. Surely she had plenty of other things to do, even if she was always checking up on me to see if I needed anything. She was incredibly sweet.

"Okay. I'll see you later tonight. Don't be late!" my mom said lovingly, leaning over and giving me a kiss on the top of my brunette hair before she looked to the man who was still standing with us. "Bye, Gregory."

"Farewell, Majesty."

She walked down the hall to go to her suite, and I looked over at Gregory briefly. "I gotta go too. See ya!"

I heard Gregory call his farewell as I started off at a quick walk, the heavy shopping bags still over my arms. I had a few accessories in the bags that I would wear later tonight, but mostly it was clothes that I could wear on casual days. I had too many formal outfits and not enough jeans, sweats, and shorts. I was an eighteen year old princess as of today, but that didn't mean I didn't get days to wear whatever I wanted.

Tonight, though, I would have to be formal. Extremely so, actually. Tonight, there was going to be a large dinner for all the people in the castle, other royal guests we invited from other provinces, and then a dance. The dance was a set up for me to find my prince charming. Yeah, you heard me right. Nobody knew that I was with Riku, and even if they did, it wouldn't matter.

A princess needed to marry royalty.

So, dukes and people from royal bloodlines were all being invited to come to the event tonight, and I would have to dance with each of them at least once. And my mom hoped that I would find somebody I would be interested in. But I wouldn't, because I wasn't searching for a boyfriend. I was happy with Riku, even if he was grumpy lately and way overprotective since what happened in town the other day. Nobody else knew about that, but even they could see that he was suffocating me a little by not giving me more space. Despite all that extreme concern, he was a sincere guy. Brave, kind, intelligent, wise…He was a terrific guy.

I think…I may have loved him.

"Finally, you're back," Riku said as I entered the bedroom. I looked up and saw him standing there, staring in the direction of me and the door. It seemed like he had been there staring for a long time, waiting. Didn't he have anything better to do? I thought he could get ready for tonight, but he was already dressed in a suit even if it was over an hour before we needed to be ready.

"Yeah, well, shopping takes a while," I said with a cheesy smile. "Especially with unlimited money. Gosh do I love this place…"

"Anything happen?"

"Yeah, we got mugged," I said sarcastically. Riku clearly didn't buy it, even if he had been concerned something like that would happen. "Nothing bad happened, Riku. We were almost caught a few times, but we had fun sneaking around like secret agents and crawling into stores."

"You can't be serious."

"I am!" I exclaimed with a smile. "Okay, so it was crawling into **a **store—singular. But it was still a ton of fun."

"I can't believe they let you out unsupervised," Riku murmured.

"We're big girls; we can take care of ourselves," I said as I approached my bed. I set down the heavy bags and then walked over to the closet to look for the beautiful red dress that I would wear for the evening. "Ah, here it is," I murmured after looking through the closet. I pulled out the full-length dress, looking it over with excited blue eyes. It had gems on the upper part of the dress that fit my torso, and then a few more selectively placed gems on the bottom half that wasn't so tight against my skin. I had to wear a dress that I could dance in, even if I was a terrible dancer.

Riku let the conversation drop, but he still spoke to me as I headed to the bathroom to get changed. "You are going to be_ so_ late."

"Am not!" I called from the bathroom, starting to do my hair. I wouldn't be late, because I was doing my hair in a simple, elegant way. I was going to put it up in a smooth bun. And then makeup would take me fifteen minutes, and getting into the dress and shoes and accessories would take another twenty. I had plenty of time.

"It takes you, like, three hours to get ready for this type of thing. It's your birthday, so obviously it's going to take you even longer than usual…"

"I have a plan to get this done; don't you worry. Twenty minutes for hair, fifteen for makeup, and another twenty to get dressed and accessorized. I'll be fine."

"You forgot you have to go through a quick rehearsal for walking into the ball, aren't you?"

I peeked my head out of the bathroom, hairbrush still in my hand as I looked at Riku. "…You're lying." I didn't remember ever hearing anything like that.

Riku smirked. "Yeah, I am."

"Jerk!" I heard him laugh at the comment as I returned to my hair, remembering the other morning when he taunted me in a similar way with not waking me up for class. "You need to get a hobby that doesn't involve scaring me senseless. It's so not cool!"

"Why give up a hobby that's so much fun?" Riku responded coolly.

"Um, because it's torture for me?"

"You always smile about it in the end and you know it."

"Ah, shut up," I said, a small smile appearing on my lips. He was right, though, because he always got me to smile in the end, no matter what his antics were. I could never be angry at him too long, since he was so sweet. Sweet…That was something I never thought I would describe Riku as. He seemed too tough for that at first, but he proved me wrong.

"You're smiling right now, aren't you?"

I didn't bother responding, continuing to work on my hair. The answer was obvious, and that was probably one reason Riku didn't come into the bathroom to check. The other was to give me privacy. Even if we lived in the same suite, he knew his boundaries, and he wouldn't risk seeing me indecent. He was a gentleman when he wanted to be.

And being the "gentleman" that he was, he let me focus on getting ready for the next hour without many interruptions. He even turned on the music that I loved so that I could enjoy getting ready. He was terrific for doing something so small for me. To me, it was the small things that mattered most.

I finished putting on the tiara that was my crown, looking in the tall mirror in my bedroom. I was fully dressed now in the gorgeous red dress, a silver necklace and bracelet, and silver shoes that were almost hidden completely under the dress. But I still felt like a princess. Even if I actually _was _one, it was a feeling I had to get used to.

"You look beautiful," Riku commented softly, stepping behind me and setting a hand on my bare shoulder.

And, of course, I instantly blushed at the comment. "You're looking good yourself, handsome," I stated, looking over the figure that was reflected in the mirror. It was a simple black suit, but the aqua shirt Riku had on underneath matched his eyes perfectly. I would have to insist that he bought more shirts that color, because he looked stunning.

"Thanks," Riku said with a small smile. "Let's get going to dinner. It's time for everyone to see the beautiful princess."

*…*…*…*…*…*

The night continued without a hitch, starting with a wonderful dinner in the formal dining hall in the castle. I sat at the same table as my mother, and other dignitaries sat at the same table as us as the "less important" people sat and mingled at the other tables. By the time dinner ended, I already knew the name of every prince and duke I was to speak to later. And I caught a glimpse at some of their faces, too. Some of them were actually fairly attractive.

Not that I was checking any of them out or anything! But…if things didn't work out between me and Riku, then I would be marrying one of these young men. The ages of the eligible men ranged from fourteen to thirty five, but thankfully quite a few of them were closer to my age. So I would try to stay closer to them than the creepy thirty-five year old that believed a seventeen year age difference didn't mean anything.

As soon as dinner was over, there was some mingling in the dining hall while others started towards the ball room. I slipped away in that time and walked to another area of the castle; I couldn't just walk in like the rest of the people were doing—I was the princess, the reason why everyone was here! My entrance would be a little bit more grand, whether I wanted it to be or not.

There was a staircase on the second floor that I would be walking down to reach the ball room that was on the first floor. The stairs let out right in the room, and the top was almost like an indoor balcony that everyone could see me from. I quietly slipped into the room and saw my escort standing there waiting. He would lead me down the stairs and then keep an eye on me for the rest of the night, for my escort wasn't just anybody. It was Riku. And the irony of it was that he was going to show me off to the guys here by helping me make my entrance. If he had his choice, he would kick them all out and tell them I was taken. But he couldn't do that.

I nodded to Riku, and he nodded to me in return, taking my arm as one of the other guards standing in the area tapped a staff on the ground loudly several times. The room hushed after a few moments, and much to my dismay, everyone's eyes went to me.

"Ladies and gentleman, may I present to you the Princess, Stephanie Hope and her escort, Riku, knight of Cadia."

_That's our cue_, I thought, gently lifting my dress a few inches as Riku led me down the stairs that had a slight curve to them. I felt everyone's gaze on us as the quiet music continued, and I blushed despite myself. I could practically hear Mr. Bottomsworth's voice in my ear, telling me to stand tall and confident like a princess and not to be shy. Princesses weren't shy.

When we reached the bottom of the stairs, everyone went back to their own mingling. And because of that, I couldn't help but sigh softly in relief. The attention was off of me…for now. As soon as I walked onto the dance floor, I was sure to be bombarded by boys.

"Don't lead anybody on," Riku said in my ear.

"I'll try my best," I whispered, giving him a weak smile.

"Hmph," he hummed with a small smirk, releasing my arm and stepping back to stand in his post for the night. I suddenly felt alone because of that, but I knew that I wouldn't be alone for long. Exhaling a soft breath in preparation, I looked back at the dance floor in front of me and started towards it, noticing quite a few eyes on me.

I looked around the area and stopped in the middle, where three boys nearly ran into each other trying to get to me to ask me to dance. Another one managed to sneak past the chaos and get to me, and so he was the first person that I danced with the entire night.

He certainly wasn't the last, though. All night, as soon as one song ended, another guy would come up and take off where the person before him left off. And through dancing, I could see their personalities. A lot of them were show-offs. Some were shy. And others were klutzy, just like the guy I was stuck dancing with right now.

Now, I had to realize that I wasn't the best dancer in the world either. I couldn't keep a beat, even if I listened to music all the time. And I was light on my feet, but I wasn't graceful. I was working on it with the few dance lessons I got so I wouldn't make a fool of myself in public. It helped, but this poor guy who was dancing with me should have received some of those lessons too.

"Ouch," I said softly, feeling his foot step on mine before he quickly withdrew it.

"S-sorry, princess," he stuttered.

"Mind if I cut in?" I looked over to the side at the new voice, and I felt my shoulders slump in relief. It wasn't some prince who was trying to show off for my sake; it was a friend that I made since I moved to Cadia. Nathaniel. He was just an inch or two taller than me, and his green eyes shone like nothing I had ever seen before. He was thin, but he was clearly strong enough to fight if the time came. But the youthful haircut with his shaggy brown hair almost in his eyes showed his peaceful, fun-loving nature.

"No, of course not," the other boy muttered, letting me go. He bowed to me briefly before he turned and started away, probably humiliated. But…It happened. There wasn't really anything I could do about it.

"My lady?" my friend said, bowing slightly to me and stretching out his hand for me to take. And with a smile, I gladly took it, my hand finding his shoulder as his other one found my waist.

"Thanks, Nathaniel. You're my hero."

"Eh. No big deal. I just didn't want your feet to have blisters at the end of the night because of all the guys stepping on you."

"While I appreciate the thought, I think I'll still get blisters from the heels," I said, making a face and glancing down at my shoes. I couldn't see them because of the dress, obviously, but still. The shoes were getting uncomfortable now since I was on my feet for a long time, constantly moving.

"Nothing much I can do about that," Nathaniel stated with a shrug. "But, uh…do you think you can do me a favor?"

This is what I like about you, Nathaniel, I thought. You're not afraid to talk to me like I'm a normal person. "Sure, what's up?"

"Can you tell your body guard to stop giving me the death glare?" Nathaniel asked while looking over my shoulder. Apparently Riku hadn't left his spot, and he was still staring at me and whoever I danced with. "I mean, I know he doesn't like me, but he seriously looks like he could kill me right now."

I sighed, shaking my head as me and Nathaniel turned on our feet. Now, I was the one facing Riku and seeing his "death glare". And it was quite deadly. _"Riku, stop," _I silently mouthed to him. Nathaniel wasn't flirting with me or anything; he never did. He was just being a good friend and saving me from dancing with another person of nobility.

Riku continued to stare, and I looked down at the ground in sadness. "Sorry," I apologized softly to Nathaniel. It wasn't right for Riku to treat him like this, especially since he was a nice guy. He didn't come from such a nice background, though.

As I heard Nathaniel hum and say that it was alright, I remembered who this person was that I was dancing with. Nathaniel was Gregory's nephew. And since Riku hated Gregory and his family so much, his hatred even bled into the next generation. But he had no reason to hate either of them! Gregory changed, and Nathaniel was nice from the get-go. I wished Riku didn't hold a grudge, but he did. And I just couldn't get him to let it go no matter what I tried to do.

He didn't understand why I didn't hold a grudge. Tristan, Gregory's brother and Nathaniel's father, kidnapped me and tried to kill me. And "King" Olaf had tried to do the same. Riku insisted that all people in that family were evil, but I couldn't believe it. Unlike him, I had hope that people could change, and that people could defy their genes. If evil was in a person's genes, they could still defy it. I just knew it.

"So, how many more people do you have to dance with?" Nathaniel asked in my ear, close because of the dance. Too close for Riku's tastes, surely.

"I dunno. It can't be too many, since it's almost the end of the day."

"Yeah, I think this is the first ball that I've gone to that ends right at midnight," Nathaniel stated with a smirk. "But it's understandable, considering how big your eighteenth birthday is. Gotta do something special for every moment of the day, right?"

"Well, that's what everyone seems to think," I said with a smirk of my own. "I wouldn't mind laying in bed and reading a book all day, but hey, I can't really complain. You do anything special for your eighteenth birthday?"

"Nah," the boy responded with a shake of his head. "It was just a normal day. Cadia wasn't like this when you weren't here, you know. There were no celebrations. I think that's why everyone is so into your party. Other than it being centered around you, the kingdom's lost princess," he added with a smirk.

"Of course," I agreed sarcastically. Like I was that big of a prize.

"Hey, believe it or not, but these people all adore you. You mean a lot to them, Steph. You give them hope."

I blushed at the compliment. "…I'm just a normal girl who happens to be a princess," I said modestly. "I've got a lot of work to do before I can make a real difference."

"Yeah, but you're on your way. Soon, you'll be able to help everyone and-"

"I need to cut in."

_Riku._ I mentally sighed at his tone, and Nathaniel and I both stopped dancing to look at the taller figure next to us. "It's time to go to the balcony to view the fireworks. It's nearly midnight."

"Ah, of course," Nathaniel said, taking a small step back and taking his hand off my waist. He did, however, keep a hold of my hand. He gently lifted it to his lips and winked at me before he released my hand. "Thanks for the dance, my lady."

I smiled weakly and nodded before I felt myself get dragged off by my over protective, and extremely jealous, boyfriend. "Riku, slow down," I hissed as he dragged me away from the people. "You're going to make me trip over my dress!"

"You weren't tripping over it when you were dancing."

"Would you rather I did, so that I fell into the arms of every boy I danced with?" I returned with an arched brow. When Riku was fuming too much to respond, I sighed and shook my head. "He didn't mean anything by it, okay? It's just who he is." Nathaniel wasn't a flirt.

"Bull. That creep did it just to tick me off…"

"In that case, I guess he did a good job," I piped with furrowed eyebrows. "How many times do I have to tell you this, Riku? Guys are going to try to get close to me, either as friends or as lovers. You can either be bitter about it or just trust that I like **you**, even if you're over protective and jealous."

Riku finally listened to me as we reached the top of the stairs, a sigh leaving his lips. "I do trust you, Steph. It's them that I don't trust."

"I know," I responded softly. "But let's just enjoy the rest of my birthday while we can, okay?"

"I'm not so sure we can."

I felt worried immediately. "Why?" What could have been wrong? I must have missed something while I was dancing with everyone…

"You know that you gain power when you turn eighteen," he stated as we headed to the balcony. I nodded in confirmation, and he continued. "Well, you were supposed to gain them the moment you turned eighteen. But nothing happened. Your mom can sense it."

"I...What does this mean?" I asked weakly.

"It probably means that the story got messed up somewhere along the line," Riku said with a laugh, easing my nerves. "It's still your birthday, so maybe you'll get your powers right before the clock strikes twelve. That's what we're trusting on now."

"Mm…okay." That made sense. It was true I didn't feel any different the exact moment I turned eighteen, but the day wasn't over yet. There was still time. I couldn't imagine not getting the powers I was destined to receive. It just wasn't a possibility.

We reached the balcony where my mother and two of her guard were, and she smiled at my presence. "Finally," she said in exasperation. "The fireworks are just starting!"

As if on cue, fireworks suddenly exploded in the sky. The colors swirled and then flew off in different directions, and my eyes widened at the show. I had never seen those before. Ever.

Looking down at the crowd that gathered outside the castle to watch, they clapped at the fireworks. They must have seen them before, but a long time ago. I couldn't keep my eyes off them for the next few minutes as more unique fireworks shot into the sky and dazzled me with their bright colors, design, and shapes.

"Fifteen seconds," Queen Andrea said softly.

"What? Till when?" I asked, looking over at my mom.

"Till the end of the day." _Oh…I get it._ I would receive my powers within fifteen seconds, then. I wondered how I would feel when they hit me. What kind of powers would they be? Would it give me wisdom to be the princess I was meant to be? Or physical strength? I would still be myself, wouldn't I? They wouldn't affect my nature; they'd help me strong enough to face the future. Whatever it held.

"Five seconds…Three…two…one…"

The day changed, but I did not.

Nothing happened.


	4. Chapter 4: Breaking News

**Author's note: Hey guys, readers, reviewers, subscribers…internet monkeys. 'Tis I, Peanut, here to thank Eddie Camp, SSBTMM and Naivette for review chapter 3. 3 reviews for chapter 3…Ironic. Hopefully I can get more for this one! :P In all seriousness, please review, it makes me feel super terrific. **

**This chapter's a good one folks. (: But hey, all of them are in my opinion. So, read on! **

Chapter Four: Breaking News

"I…I don't understand why nothing happened," Queen Andrea said as she paced the room. It was around two in the morning, and we finally had a few moments alone after all the party guests left. It was so hard to stay composed while they were all here, knowing that something was wrong with me. My eighteenth birthday came and went, and I didn't receive the power that I was supposed to.

_What's the matter with me?_

"Perhaps the legend was wrong," Mr. Bottomsworth said as he also paced in a different pattern than my mother. He was here with us, since he was so intelligent. It was only four of us: me, my mother, Mr. Bottomsworth, and Riku. Fortunately, me and my mom had a quick minute to get out of our formal dresses and into more casual clothes, or else this conversation would have been a little weird. Even if the four of us were gathered, only my teacher and my mother were really talking. "Perhaps it is her twenty-first birthday, not her eighteenth."

"No, that can't be right. I received my power when I was eighteen, and I'm sure my mother was the same."

"What about her genes, then? Are you sure that Terry was royalty?"

"Of course I am," my mom spat with a little impatience and defensiveness. "Her father was of noble blood as well, so there's no way that the chain of power was broken."

"But it **was **broken somehow. Otherwise, she would have received her power."

"How could it have possibly been broken?" I asked quietly, though nobody heard me. They only continued with their conversation.

"Perhaps it has something to do with her living in Twilight Town most of her life instead of here? Perhaps whatever magical force gives her power does not recognize her as the princess."

"I refuse to believe that," my mother said with determination. "She's proven herself to be a princess since she moved here. It's the strength of her heart that determines her social standing, not where she's lived."

Mr. Bottomsworth sighed, stopping his pacing to stare down at the ground. "That's what I'd like to believe to," he said quietly. "Stephanie has proven herself to be extraordinary since she came here. Extraordinary, even if she is human and has flaws. …Is there any way that the powers can be suppressed by Stephanie herself? Some type of fear within her that's telling her not to accept these abilities?"

"No," Queen Andrea responded. "This power is too great to be held back. Just like you cannot deny your position as prince or princess, queen or king, you cannot refuse these powers."

"What kind of powers are these, anyway?" Riku finally asked, butting into the conversation for the first time in a while. He was sitting right beside me on the couch, close but not close enough to let anyone know that we were a couple. Despite that, his presence still comforted me and assured me that there was nothing that I did wrong. This whole mess wasn't my fault.

"It entails a lot of things," Mr. Bottomsworth explained, lifting his gaze to Riku before he continued. "It's a sense of justice, wisdom. It's not physical strength, but strength of the heart. And…these powers also determine the direction the person will take with their life."

"What?" I asked, paling. What was that supposed to mean?

"When you receive these powers, your fate is determined. Whether it's for Light or for Darkness. If that is what is bestowed upon you, then that is the path you are destined to fail. And there is absolutely no way for anybody to break their path."

"But nobody is ever given a dark destiny in this kingdom," my mom said upon seeing my worry. "I'm sure that you'll be destined to follow a path of Light."

"I'm not so sure," the scholar said pessimistically. "Perhaps this is a sign that Stephanie will give into the Darkness."

"I will not!" I cried defensively. I rose to my feet, staring at the two adults who stood still and stared right back at me. "I didn't trust in the Light for the first eighteen years of my life only to walk a path of Darkness. That's not my fate!"

Silence filled the room, and I only stared at Mr. Bottomsworth. He had never seen me act out before, and he probably never would, since I was so respectful of teachers even when they were hard on me. But I couldn't hold back my feelings on this topic. The Light…it was what I stood for. What I fought for. No way was I going to accept that my path was going to be a dark one.

"You truly are a princess of Cadia, Stephanie," Mr. Bottomsworth said with a small smile. "You keep standing up for what you believe in, and you'll be just fine. Of that, I am certain."

The compliment surprised me, especially since he had never said something so kind to me before. All that I could do was nod faintly before the conversation picked back up to where it was before, discussing the problem.

"What're we supposed to do to fix this?" Riku asked.

"Honestly? I have no idea," Mom said, shaking her head. "But we can't do nothing, right? We either need to do some more research or find a way to fix whatever problem this is. Whichever comes first."

"And we can't let anybody know there's a problem," Riku added. "The people's faith in the government must be a little shaky after everything with Olaf and his brothers."

"Unfortunately, that's true. I don't like keeping secrets, but I don't feel as if we have a choice."

"What if somebody out there knows what's wrong, though?" I asked. "What if they can help?"

"I highly doubt that's the case," the queen responded. "Even if they did, it doesn't matter. Riku's point still stands. We need to keep the kingdom stable."

"Secrecy will do the opposite of that, your Majesty," Mr. Bottomsworth said, speaking for the first time in a while. "Fortunately, I don't think there will be a need for it. I know what's wrong. And it's not something that you're going to like to hear. Any of you."

My heart rose up to my throat at the anticipation my teacher built up, my eyes locked on him. I already didn't like hearing what we were discussing, so what could possibly make this worse? Was it that there was no way to solve this? That I wasn't destined to rule Cadia after all? That would have been alright, I guess. It would have been a lot of pressure off my shoulders. But if I didn't have Cadia, what did I have? Nothing, really. I lost it all when I left Twilight Town. Or most of it, anyway. I lost a lot, but I gained more.

"There's a curse that's holding back Stephanie's power."

All of us gasped. A curse? How bad was it? And who would have—

"And I know who cast it, and continues to have Stephanie bound by it. Sorceress Isabella."

_Oh…Oh my gosh_. I felt myself get dizzy at the mere mention of that woman. She kidnapped me when I was just a child and raised me like her daughter only to betray me. I loved her, but she didn't love me. I called her "mom", but in the end, she didn't call me her daughter. She tried to kill me once I realized the truth about my identity. But she didn't. And I thought she was killed in the process…

"Steph? Steph! You okay?" Riku's voice was right in my ear, loud enough to snap me out of my daze.

"Yeah, yeah," I mumbled._ No, no. I'm not okay…_

"You should leave. You look terrible."

"I'm fine. I need to hear this," I managed. "But…I thought that Sora…um…"

Riku shook his head. "No. Sora kept her alive after he took her away, just in case we needed her for anything. She's being kept in a prison, where she can no longer do any harm." _Well, that's not completely true, if she's placed a curse on me…_I thought, staring down at the ground.

"I don't see how her curse could still hold," Mr. Bottomsworth mumbled mostly to himself. "But I suppose that anything is possible with her…We'll have to go to her to get answers. But we can't let the people know what's going on, or that she's alive."

"You're right," Queen Andrea said. "We can only send a few people…"

"I'll go." I lifted my gaze to my mom, seeing out of the corner of my eye that everyone was frozen and staring at me in shock. That was understandable, considering how touchy I was about Isabella. But… "This is about me. I need to have a part in fixing this."

"You know how dangerous it is out there, Steph," Riku said quietly in concern.

"Not really," I disagreed. "I mean, yeah, it's dangerous, but only because of Heartless. And I've fought them off before. Nobody outside this world knows that I'm royalty. I'm just a normal person, not somebody that people would attack. I'll be fine, right Mom?" I looked to her, eyes pleading for her to let me go. I proved a logical point. And besides, I probably wouldn't be going alone. If anything, I was sure that at least one person would volunteer to go with me. And that was the person right beside me.

"…I have to agree," Mom sighed. "You…Riku, can you go with?"

"Of course, Your Majesty." He would have come with or without an invitation.

"Good," she said with a nod. "Then it's settled. The two of you will set off early tomorrow morning on a trip to see the country for yourselves. And we can't give out your location due to security reasons. It'll be a good enough cover for the few days that you're gone. And when you return, return at night, when people won't see you."

"We'll be good, Mom, promise," I said with a weak smile. If we were leaving in a little over twenty four hours, then there was no need to make these types of preparations right now. If anything, it was time to go to bed. It was probably close to three by now, and tomorrow would probably be a normal day as far as my classes went. It would be terrific if I could actually focus in any of them. I was so shocked my mo—Sorceress Isabella was alive.

"Okay. Now we should all be off to bed. This can wait until daytime."

"Right," me, Riku, and my teacher mumbled in agreement. All of us started out of the room. I was so drained from the day that started so early on. Shopping, then dinner, then the party, and that meeting. I must have been awake for over twenty hours. Hey, I know it's not much, but it's a lot to me. I always did love my sleep after all.

Mr. Bottomsworth said his farewells to me and Riku before turning down another hall to go home for the night. And of course, as soon as he was gone, Riku started walking closer to me.

"You okay?" he asked quietly.

I shook my head softly, looking down at the red carpet of the hall as we walked back to the suite. "Of course not," I said softly. "I just found out that Isabella is alive, and she has a curse on me. I won't be okay until she's out of my life forever."

At those honest words, Riku reached over and squeezed my hand. After that, he left me to my thoughts, however unpleasant they were. I thought that my past was left behind me completely. I thought that there was nothing to drag me back to the people who hurt me and abandoned me. But I was wrong.

My past was back in the present, and I had to face it, whether I wanted to or not.

*…*…*…*…*…*

_Familiarity surrounded me as I stood in my home, the walls of the hallway painted a light tan color. There was a dark green strip of paint that went horizontally across the wall, running evenly except where it ran into the wooden doors. I remembered…me and my dad painted this hall. I was just four years old, and I insisted on helping him. And so, he gave me a brush and let me paint. Thinking back on the memory now, I was sure that he repainted the hall when I wasn't around. I did a pretty crappy job. But he made me feel like I did terrific. Like it was the best thing in the world that I helped him paint._

_And to me, it was the best. I loved spending time with him, and away from my other parent. It was sad but true. My mother never showed me love like he did, nor did she ever make me feel like I was worth anything._

_But I still loved her. I couldn't deny that. For that reason, I was here now, home, even after I was told that she was wicked. I wouldn't believe that she was the witch that the Queen said she was. I refused to believe that I grew up underneath somebody so wicked and selfish. And I refused to believe that I was duped that easily._

_The door was shut. I knocked on her bedroom door quietly as I stood outside, my heart racing. Would Riku and Sora come? They couldn't…they didn't know where my house was. And I was glad for that. I would face the truth, and I would face it alone. "Mom?" I called softly through the door. There was no answer, but I heard the noise on the other side of the door. What was it?_

_Softly, I opened the door, and I found the truth, all by myself. My mother was a sorceress. _

"_What are you doing here, child?"_

_I blinked at her voice, seeing her staring at me with cold dark eyes, her book still in her hand. She wasn't supposed to speak to me. I knew that she wasn't. But because of her prodding eyes, I responded to her. "I…I came home, Mom."_

_Sorceress Isabella laughed, tucking back her long black hair that blended in nicely with her long black dress. It also went along perfectly with her black heart. "This is not your home, and you know it. Why do you still dwell on this day? You weren't tortured enough by the actual day, so you need to keep recreating it and suffering?"_

"_No," I said, tears swelling in my eyes. "I need the truth…Isabella. I need to know how much of it was a lie." My whole childhood that I remembered, I was with her. Or doing as she bid me to do, really. But she did show care every once in a while. Was it all a lie? Was everything to manipulate me? Was my enemy really keeping me fed every day? Clothed? Alive?_

_Again, she laughed coldly. The laugh sent chills down my spine, and even if I knew this was just my imagination creating a nightmare, I still felt like I was really talking to her. But I couldn't be; her magic couldn't haunt me like this. She was locked away. Not here. Not with me._

"_The truth? Truth is relative, my dear. Believe whatever makes you happy. Believe whatever you need to so that you can live your peaceful, happy life. Live that life until the day you are sentenced to death. And that day is coming, sooner than you think."_

"_Liar!" I cried. "There has to be firm, solid truth out there. The truth is that the Light will conquer the Darkness. That I will be happy someday. And that you'll…"_

"_I'll what? Burn in Hell? Is that what you really want?"_

_Tears appeared in my eyes as I shook my head sadly. No…I didn't want that. I did and I didn't. I was so bitter about being betrayed, but something held me back from condemning her. "I loved you," I whispered, just like I did on that day months ago. "How could you do this to everyone? To me? Your daughter…"_

_Isabella stared at me, with the same cold eyes that she did on that day. Stock still, she didn't move, and neither did I. It felt as if her eyes could pierce right through me and kill me right then and there. But it was her words that killed me. People say that actions are more powerful than words. They remark things like "Gee, if looks could kill…" Well, they forgot the power of simple words. And these four pierced my heart and continued to haunt me._

"_I have no daughter." _

I woke up with a cry, bolting up in my queen sized bed. With wide eyes, I stared down at the pastel purple sheets, darkness surrounding me. Nighttime. It was still nighttime. So I had the privacy to do this. Tears appeared in my eyes and I started crying, my eyes shutting as my body started trembling. She betrayed me…It was all a lie…

Within only a few seconds of crying, I heard somebody rush into the room to see if I was okay. My small scream must have alerted them to something being out of the ordinary. But I didn't look. I didn't have to. As soon as that person saw me, they walked over to the bed and sat down beside me. Strong arms wrapped around me and pulled me closer to their body, their body heat refreshing even if I wasn't cold.

"Shh, Steph…It's okay."

"Riku," I said weakly. _I'm sorry I woke you up._ This was the first nightmare I had in a while, and with the news I was given today, I was a little shaken up. She was alive, after all. I didn't know what to make of that. Even if I didn't wish death upon her, I wished she would remain in my past forever. But now she wasn't just in my present; she was in my dreams as well.

"It's okay," he said again, leaning his chin against my head and holding me close as the tears leaked from my eyes. I felt my cheek pressed against warm, soft skin—his shoulder. That feeling and the heat resonating from him told me that he was shirtless. That was okay, I guess. I wasn't focused on it right now. "Bad dream?" he asked quietly.

"Yeah," I whispered.

"About her?"

"Mhm," I hummed, more moisture leaving my eyes. We didn't have to say who "her" was, because we both knew. I hated even saying her name, because that was different than calling her "mom". I had to treat her like who she really was, whether I wanted to or not. I didn't know what I wanted, but it didn't matter. I had to deal with whatever life was throwing at me right now.

"I'm sorry," Riku murmured, pulling me closer. His large hand started running down the fabric of my T-shirt, his touch surprisingly gentle considering how many battles he fought. Slowly, my heartbeat started to soften because of Riku's presence. I wasn't scared; I didn't need his presence to make me feel protected from some kind of physical danger. I just needed somebody with me. A friend, or something more.

"Are you sure you want to go through with everything?" he whispered after a minute. "Sora and I can go to Isabella and get answers…"

I shook my head against his shoulder, careful not to make his head move. "No. No, this is something that I need to do," I whispered. "I need to put the past behind me, and make sure it stays there this time."

"It's never that easy, Steph," Riku commented softly. "Believe me, I know."

"That's still going to be my goal when we set out. Even if I can't accomplish it, I need to try. I can't live with a shadow of the past following me around everywhere I go. It's chasing me, Riku. And I can't lose it…not unless I turn around and chase it."

"Mm."

"So, will you help me?" I asked quietly. I couldn't face this battle alone. Or if I did, I at least needed to know somebody was in the background to support me. I needed his faith.

A single chuckle left Riku's lips. "Of course I will," he murmured, pulling me closer and running over the fabric of my shirt with his hand. "You couldn't just get me to sit by the sidelines and let you face it alone. You're stuck with me."

"Clearly," I mumbled, thinking of the past week or so. He had been glued to my side, and extremely overprotective. And a bit of a jerk, honestly.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, practically reading my thoughts. "I know I come off too strong sometimes, but…I'm new at this. I just don't want you getting hurt, like you are now."

"Nobody could have seen this coming though," I stated quietly.

"No, but I still don't like to see you so upset, you know. I know what it's like to try to shake off shadows of the past. Sometimes, taking that route makes the pain even worse. Instead of chasing the past away, you get sucked into it."

"Maybe…but I still need to try, you know? Succeed or fail, I need to at least try to put this behind me and live in the present."

"You can't completely disregard the past when you live in the present. The past is a part of who you are."

"I wish it wasn't," I mumbled incoherently.

"What?"

"Nothing."

Riku wisely left me to my thoughts, though he did keep his presence known by holding me close to his bare chest. With my eyes shut, I focused on my reflections. I wished my past wasn't a part of me, because it was so terrible. Remembering all the bad things, all I felt towards my past was bitterness. Even if some things did happen in my life. It was easiest to feel bitter because the bad events happened more recently. The wound was still open, and the poison was growing. The more I thought about the past, the more I hated it. The more I wished it never happened.

If I faced this, maybe I could lose the bitterness residing in my heart. Maybe I could feel peace and know that everything was sorted out for good this time, and that I could pursue happiness for my future. Those were my hopes and dreams.

"…Try to sleep, if you can," Riku said softly in my ear.

Sleep? Right, it was the middle of the night. I could feel my exhaustion coming back on now that the adrenaline from my dream faded, and I believed that I could fall asleep here in Riku's arms. That seemed to be what he was planning on.

"Thanks, Riku," I murmured, leaning into him as he ran his soft fingers over my back. I heard him grunt in response, as if this was no big deal. But it was a big deal to me. Where would I be without him? I hoped I would never have to find out.

Within a few minutes, I slipped out of consciousness in the arms of the person I held dear, my negative thoughts leaving me for a little while. I'd face the past another day.


	5. Chapter 5: Moment of Truth

**Hello faithful readers (and newcomers =3). Hope you've been enjoying the story so far. I can't believe I'm already posting the next chapter; it feels like yesterday I posted the last one! But I digress. **

**Thanks to SSBTMM, Naivette, Crystal4458 and Eddie Camp for the reviews. To those of you who have concerns (ex "When will there be more KH elements in the story?" "When will they kiss again?") I'm not going to answer your questions right now. =3 All that I'm saying is don't be afraid, there is ALWAYS a method to my madness. (:**

**Welp, here's the new chapter! **

Chapter Five: Moment of Truth

"Is her majesty feeling ill today?"

"Yeah, but don't worry, I'll get her any medicine she needs. We don't need everyone rushing in here and making a fuss over her when she really needs to rest."

"I understand, sir."

_Ugh, would you guys shut up already?_ I thought as I lay in my bed. As always, I was annoyed with anything that disturbed my sleep. I had no idea what time it was, but it felt like I hadn't slept a wink. I didn't care what the consequences were of spending all day in bed; this was where I was going to stay until I had to eat or go to the bathroom.

After I fell back asleep, I didn't have any more nightmares about my mother. I was extremely restless, though. And I still was feeling that way, even if I was forcing myself to lay still. How could I just stay here, knowing how wrong everything was? I was cursed, and my "mother" was responsible. I couldn't find peace as long as that was the case.

But I couldn't exactly leave right now to go to her and fix this. Not only was I exhausted, but Riku and I couldn't leave in broad daylight. This journey had to be kept a secret from most everyone. In their eyes, everything was just fine. And it would stay that was as long as they didn't know about my curse or Isabella being alive. If they found out that secret, then who knew what would happen to Cadia? Maybe Sora should have killed her while he had the chance.

I scoffed, rolling on my bed so I was on my back. How could I wish that against the person who raised me? She couldn't be completely evil, since she wasn't the worst mother out there. No physical abuse was always a good sign. She didn't show love often, but I could excuse it somehow. Some people just weren't good at showing love.

"I guess that conversation just woke you up, huh?" Riku asked. I turned my head on the pillow and looked over towards the doorway, seeing that the door was shut and he was walking towards me. The servant must have left while I was wrapped up in my thoughts.

"Yeah, it did. But I think just about anything would have woken me up."

"Probably," he agreed softly as he stopped by my bed. "You've been tossing and turning ever since I let go of you and let you lay down to sleep."

"Yeah, well, I'm a little restless," I said quietly. "You know, finding out that your "mother" is alive and has a curse on you will do that to you."

"I wouldn't know how that feels, but for what it's worth, I'm sorry."

"I'm sorry too," I responded quietly. "Thanks." Riku nodded faintly to me, staring at me from his spot by the bed as I laid on my back. "What time is it, anyway?"

"Almost nine. I already told Mr. Bottomsworth that you weren't coming to class today."

I shut my eyes, fighting the urge to roll my eyes. "I couldn't care less about that right now," I stated bluntly.

"I know that. And I agree. Mr. Bottomsworth was understanding, if that helps anything. I guess he's not such a bad guy after all."

"Guess not," I agreed with a small nod. "So…I shouldn't call him 'Mr. Butt' anymore?"

Riku chuckled once, a weak smile on his lips. "I'd say no, especially since he was the one smart enough to realize what was wrong."

A question popped into my head, and it was one that I hadn't considered until this very moment. "Riku…how did he know that my—Isabella was alive?" Was I the only person kept out of the loop or something? Because I would be so emotionally attached to the situation? That would have made sense, but still, I wished that somebody would have told me. Maybe. I didn't know what was best.

"Not many people know," Riku admitted with a shake of his head. "Sora and I shared it with your mom, and she decided who else to tell. You were left out of it…for obvious reasons."

I smiled bitterly, opening my eyes and looking over at Riku. "I'm really not taking it well, am I?" I could be worse, though; I could be curled up in a fetal position and begging for somebody to erase my memories. Not that that was possible, of course. And if it was, I couldn't get away with doing it. Riku was adamant about me remembering my past, even if it was painful. And I understood where he was coming from, even if I didn't like to admit it.

"You're taking it as well as can be expected," Riku assured me softly. "If you were bubbly and giddy after finding out the person who betrayed you was alive, I'd be concerned. I might have locked you in a padded cell."

"Thanks Riku," I said sarcastically. A padded cell? For an insane person? I was crazy in a lot of ways, but not mental.

"Hey, that's what I'm here for," he said with a smirk, lifting a hand and patting me on the shoulder. "You'd be pretty lost without my words of wisdom."

"That I would," I responded quietly, serious even if he was joking. Maybe I'd be okay without his "wisdom", but I would be lost without him. He was my strong tower. As cheesy as that sounded.

Riku squeezed my shoulder before he took his hand away, gazing at me with softer eyes. "Try to get some more sleep," he suggested softly. "Tomorrow's going to be a big day."

_Right…tomorrow,_ I thought. The day that I would face Sorceress Isabella. I nodded faintly and laid back down, hearing Riku walk away to give me some privacy. While my thoughts should have distracted me, I was so exhausted that I fell asleep fairly easily. This was the only way that I could prepare for tomorrow. The day I faced the person who tried to kill me.

*…*…*…*…*…*

That day went by so slowly, but eventually, "tomorrow" did arrive. That tomorrow was the current today now. Riku and I snuck away before the sun rose, taking a gummi ship to our destination. We had to not use the warp device, though, since that would have made our exit pretty obvious. The ride took hours and hours and hours…It severely tested my patience. But Riku was being a good sport, trying to cheer me up even if he was always the serious one. I appreciated him so much, and I did forgive him for his recent behavior. But I did warn him that next time, he shouldn't get so jealous. I was going to be physically close to other guys in my life, whether I wanted to or not.

I guess the ride was good for something, since that talk was productive. Thankfully, Riku didn't try too hard to talk to me about my problems. He only reminded me that I can't forget my past, so the best thing I could do was appreciate it. I turned out good in his eyes. "Terrific" was the word that he actually used. But Riku was more terrific in my eyes. To think that half a year I didn't know him at all…At least I was smart enough to appreciate that I met him. He was a true friend. More than that, actually. I was falling in love with him.

One time, my mom thought she saw a bit of my adoration for Riku. She didn't realize the extent of it, though. If she did, she would have said more than she actually did. All that she said was that it was "dangerous to fall in love with a Keyblade warrior."

I knew that. Of course I knew that. As long as Riku had the Keyblade, he would have the responsibility of protecting other world and people. But at least for now, he was solely devoted to me. I was okay with that, since I needed him right now. I had to face my worst fear: my past.

A world suddenly appeared in my vision as I sat shotgun in the gummi ship. We approached it rapidly, and that was when I saw the large castle. "That's it, huh?" I asked softly. Disney Castle.

Disney Castle wasn't where Isabella was being kept. That would have been absolutely ludicrous. How could someone so dark reside in a world that rejected Darkness? She couldn't; she'd die on the spot. We were here for another reason that involved getting_ to _Isabella.

Isabella was being kept in a prison so secure that it wasn't even in the realm. Riku said that Isabella was trapped in another realm by King Mickey and his wife, Queen Minnie. Apparently they had the power to banish people to the Realm Between. I had never heard of that before, obviously, so Riku explained what that was all about so that I wouldn't be in the dark any longer. We were going there, after all.

The Realm Between is between the Realm of Darkness and the Realm of Light. Pretty obvious, right? But that's not all. There are worlds in that Realm, and then there are areas that are just empty, void of any life. Void of any escape. Isabella was trapped in one of those areas with her powers suppressed so that she had no power over anyone or anything in the Realm of Light or the Realm of Darkness. What I was confused about was how Riku said that the worlds in that realm were polarized. Meaning, they were closer to one realm or another.

That made sense. What didn't make sense was how Isabella's prison was closer to the Realm of Darkness than the Realm of Light. Shouldn't that have given her some strength? That was what I figured, but that wasn't the case. The prison was still secure despite that.

_Too many logistics for me,_ I thought as Riku landed the ship in the available hangar. All that I needed to know was that she was trapped in that realm, and only King Mickey or Queen Minnie could create a portal for Riku and I to travel through to get there. The Realm Between was large, so large that nobody could stumble across Isabella's location unless they knew where she was.

"You've never been to this world before, huh?" Riku asked as he led me out of the ship, walking a few steps in front of me to show me the path.

"Nope." How would I have? As far as I could remember, I had only been to Cadia, Twilight Town and Destiny Islands. I hadn't seen many worlds like he had as a Keyblade wielder.

"Well, just don't freak out because of all the talking animals and magical brooms," he said with a smirk.

Brooms? "What?" I asked, going along with that thought. Magic brooms of all things? So weird…

"Welcome to Disney Castle," Riku said with the same smirk, pushing the doors open and revealing sunlight into the hangar. I grunted at first because of the brightness, but then I stepped outside to see the world. And it was beautiful. The grass was so green, and the shrubbery was cut to perfection. I didn't think that I ever saw a courtyard that was so beautiful and peaceful.

A sudden, loud snore interrupted my thoughts.

"That's Goofy," Riku informed me with an amused look, the young man pointing over to the side at the dog that was wearing armor and sleeping on the ground. Seeing his nose move up and down in his sleep, even a few yards away, let me know that the name "Goofy" fit him well.

"Wake up, you big palooka!"

"…And that's Donald."

"No slacking off!" the duck named Donald quacked at his friend, unaware of our presence. I gasped at how the duck pulled out a wand and then cast a thunder spell on his friend, lightning striking him and making him cry out.

"Don't worry about it," Riku said in my ear as Goofy woke up and started laughing because the magic tickled. "They do this all the time, or so I hear."

"Crazy…" I murmured. A duck—a sorcerer duck, and a knight dog being best friends? And these were the two that Sora travelled with when he was fourteen and fifteen? _Those two must have rubbed off on him, since he's pretty goofy now. But in a good way. Sora's a good guy._ He always made people smile, even me when I was first struggling with Twilight Town being swallowed by Darkness. Who knew that would be the least of my problems?

Riku led me into the castle, a large hall greeting us. "I always wished I could come here more," Riku admitted, his voice echoing throughout the area even if he wasn't speaking extremely loudly. "Mickey's a good friend of mine, and this world is pretty lighthearted. Heartless only ever attacked it one time."

"What? But how?" I asked in awe. The Heartless were everywhere, after all. This world was immune to them somehow?

"This world has something called the Cornerstone of Light. It's a like a shield for the world that doesn't allow any dark people or enemies inside."

"That's…incredible. Is this the only world with something like that?"

"Unfortunately," Riku said with a small nod. "But if any world is safe from the Darkness, it's good that it's this one. Mickey and Queen Minnie have a huge library full of information that's valuable to all the worlds. And Mickey's done a lot of work in the worlds for years now, so it's nice he has a place to come home to. He doesn't have to worry that anything will go wrong while he's gone."

"That's nice," I said softly. I wished I had that reassurance with my home. My mom was the only family I had left, so of course I wanted her to be safe. But she had guards, and she was a capable fighter. I had no reason to worry about her.

Riku hummed and nodded, stopping in front of the normal-sized door at the end of the hall. He lifted a hand and knocked lightly on it, before looking over at me. "The King's room," he said quietly. Because of that comment, I immediately stood up a little taller. I met the King before, but not under good circumstances. We were afraid of him punishing Riku and Sora for saving me when Twilight Town was temporarily consumed by Darkness. But he hadn't done anything, thank goodness. And he seemed to like me, so now it seemed okay for me to consider him a friend. A friend I was very careful around.

The muffled response "Come in" was heard through the door, so Riku led the way into the room.

"Hello, Your Majesty," Riku said as he entered the room.

"Riku? How many times do I have to tell you to call me Mick—Oh! Hi Steph," King Mickey greeted, seeing me walk in after Riku. I must have been pretty easy to miss, since Riku was bigger than me. Regardless, I smiled and said a small hello to the king. "Gee, this is a shocker," the king said, stepping up from his desk and walking around it to be closer to us. "What're you two doin' here?"

"It's a long story," Riku responded softly. "Do you have time?"

"Yeah, of course," he said cheerily, though he was also serious. "What's goin' on?"

"Well, there's a problem that we're here to take care of…In Cadia, the royal family gain certain powers and abilities when they turn eighteen. But Steph just turned eighteen two days ago and nothing happened. A few of us think that Sorceress Isabella cursed her so that she can't get her powers."

"Hm…" Mickey hummed, glaring down at the ground. "I didn't think that was possible. We have her locked away tight, and her powers shouldn't have any effect on anyone in this realm."

"We realize that," I said quietly. "But this is all that fit."

"Mm," he hummed again, nodding faintly to me in recognition. "Welp, I guess it's always possible. Sorceress Isabella is one of the strongest sorceresses I've ever met, so maybe she still has some power somehow. I guess the only way to find out would be to ask her."

"That's the same conclusion we reached," Riku said. "But we knew that you're the only person who can let us into the realm where she's trapped. So that's why we're here."

King Mickey stared at Riku in particular, eyes stern. "Riku…You know the dangers of going into that realm. Are you sure Steph should be coming with you?"

"I'm coming," I said, speaking for myself. "This is about me. And I want to be a part of solving the problem, no matter what the danger is. I can handle myself."

The king stared at me in surprise, seeing that I was gazing at him evenly. Clearly I had changed since I first met him. I wasn't so timid anymore. Despite whatever fears I had, I was facing them more bravely and boldly than I had in the past. Now that I realized how strong I was and how much potential I had, I wasn't going to go down without a fight.

"…Very well," King Mickey said with a small nod. "I'll open the portal. Riku…Tell Steph a little more about the realm, so that she's prepared for what could happen there."

The young man beside me nodded as well, turning to look at me. "Since this end of the Realm Between is closer to Darkness, we may suffer from certain…delusions," he said softly. "But nothing is going to be real. And those illusions will only appear if our fears get the best of us or if we let our guard down."

"Okay." I would keep up my guard then and we'd be just fine.

"Ready whenever you two are," King Mickey said, Keyblade now in his hand. "I'll let you two in close to Isabella's location, and whenever you're done, just shout something at the sky. I'll pull you out of there."

Both of us nodded. The mouse king also nodded in return, his Keyblade glowing as he pointed it at the wall. With a small cry, a colored beam shot out of the weapon and hit the wall. Only the wall didn't crumble. Instead, a blue and green portal appeared. That was our way to the Realm Between.

I took a small step forward, feeling Riku grasp my hand before I was ahead of him. He didn't do it to slow me down; he kept a tight grip on my hand and walked forward with me into the portal. Within just a second of walking through it, all of our surroundings changed. We were no longer in the nice office of King Mickey in Disney Castle. Instead, we were in an area where the skies around us weren't skies at all. Regardless, the blue and green colors lingered and surrounded us.

By "us", though, I didn't just mean me and Riku. There was a third person who was just a few yards in front of us. We both stopped walking at the same time, though neither of us released the other person's hand. I clearly didn't want him to let go because of how tightly I held his hand. There, right in front of us, was Sorceress Isabella.

"Happy belated birthday, daughter," she said with amusement. Riku growled beside me, and while I wished I could find the anger within me to direct it at her, I was more stunned by what she said. And how she appeared. She looked the same as the day Sora took her away. She was dressed in the black dress she wore before, long black hair flowing down her back neatly. Even if I never saw her in this outfit before this day, she wasn't a complete stranger this way. Her eyes were the same as they always were. Cold.

"I'm sorry I don't have a gift for you, but obviously I wouldn't have been able to deliver it anyway," Sorceress Isabella continued with a sly smile, standing still as she stared at me and ignored Riku. "I'm 'trapped' here in this realm."

"You do have a gift you can give," Riku said lowly. "And you can give it now. Take the curse off her."

_Yes…let me receive my powers,_ I thought, seeing Isabella blink in surprise to Riku's demands. Either that, or something else. I wasn't sure, so I just listened to her speak instead of inputting my own thoughts.

"Curse? What curse?"

"The one that you put on her before you were locked up here!" Riku spat, taking a small step forward. "She just turned eighteen and obviously she doesn't have her powers. What'd you do, witch?"

_Don't talk to my mother like that!_ I thought, though I bit my tongue for more reasons than one. She wasn't my mother anymore. She never really was, since apparently she didn't consider me a daughter. I was only her puppet.

She laughed tauntingly, making me shiver. "I have placed no curse on her," she said evenly. "I have no power in this realm, correct? That is what all your precious textbooks and your 'wise' king say. But I don't need spells to have power. It's true power that I can influence your steps without even doing anything."

_Riku…Is the realm really secure_? I thought, glancing over at him and seeing him seething. Obviously he still believed Sorceress Isabella was connected to this. Nobody else would curse me. There was nobody else around with that kind of power! I knew that if Gregory had that type of power, Riku would have accused him right away.

"Oh, but I do hate seeing you two run around like chickens with your heads chopped off," Isabella said, feigning concern. "So I'll point you two in the right direction. I didn't cast any spell on you, and I honestly don't know what the problem is. But there's somebody out there who does." Isabella paused, looking right at me as I held my breath. "Ask your father."

I gasped, turning around when I thought I heard a small noise. There, I saw him. Tall, muscular, and handsome. His bright blue eyes shone just like I remembered and his brown hair was faintly spiky. He gazed right at me, though he didn't approach me.

"Steph! Steph, there's nobody there!" Riku hollered in my ear, grabbing my shoulder and shaking me. The vision of my father began to blur, but not quickly enough for Riku's taste. He saw me still in a small daze and he pulled me close to him. He wrapped his arms around me and pressed me to his chest as if I would be safe from any illusion while I was there. Again, he seemed to be acting as if he could make every single problem in the world disappear.

Isabella laughed wickedly, though her words rang in my ear. _Ask your father…_I knew those words weren't just spoken without meaning.

"Mickey! Mickey, get us out of here!" Riku called to the sky as the sorceress's laugher continued. I peeked my head out of Riku's chest and saw the portal open right beside us. Before I could even question anything, Riku released me enough to drag me through the portal before another illusion could haunt me.

The portal disappeared and we found ourselves in the castle again. Riku held onto my arms and stared at me, continuing to ask me again and again if I was okay. But my thoughts were elsewhere, and they were loud enough to overshadow anything that he said to me.

_Ask your father_. I could tell she said those words with purpose, and the purpose wasn't to taunt me. It was to let me know something that was actually true.

_My father's alive. _


	6. Chapter 6: Home

**Author's note: Hey guys, just wanna say a quick thanks to Crystal4458 and Eddie Camp for reviewing last time. =3 I realize this is coming 3 weeks after the last chapter instead of the normal 2 weeks, but I decided that I need to slow down publishing for now. If I keep publishing every two weeks then the writing will become sloppy and I won't be able to get so far ahead on writing—meaning you'll have to wait much longer for the final chapters, and we don't want that. **

**On another note, I did manage to post a Sora/Kairi romancy oneshot this past week, so if you're a fan of the couple, you should go read that when you're done reviewing this. (:**

Chapter Six: Home

"I'm telling you he's alive," I said as I paced the room. Although we were still in King Mickey's office, it was only Riku and I in the room. The King kindly gave us some privacy after I proved to them that I was alright after the encounter with Isabella. What were they so worried about? I wasn't cursed or anything while I was there. They were just very concerned about my reaction to her words. They were both skeptical as to whether or not they were true.

Isabella said that my father was alive. Not in so many words, but I knew it was true. She told me to "ask my father" about whatever was keeping me from receiving my powers. And if she brought up the man who loved me and raised me up until his "death", I knew that he must have been alive. The feeling in my heart also supported it. Yes, he was alive. Somewhere. Somehow.

"You can't take her words so seriously, Steph," Riku said, staring at me from his spot in the room. He leaned against the wall, arms folded over his broad chest and solid black shirt. "She probably just said it to get under your skin. Which she did."

"Maybe that was some motivation behind saying it," I agreed. "But I'm sure she didn't just say those words without meaning."

"The meaning was to hurt you!"

"The meaning was to tell me that my father is actually alive!" I cried, glaring at Riku from my spot. "She wants me to find him for some reason. I don't know why, and honestly, I don't care. If my Dad's alive, then I'm going to find him." Riku sighed, obviously not believing in me. "Look…There's a small possibility you're right. But there's an even greater chance that I'M right."

"Why is that?" Riku asked quietly.

I swallowed, looking to the ground as I shook my head. "Because nobody knows her better than I do." I lived with her for over ten years of my life; if Riku didn't think I knew how to read her, then he was sadly mistaken.

"She kept her identity hidden from you your whole life, Steph," he said softly. "You didn't see any clues pointing to your heritage either. How can you say you know her that well?"

He had a point, unfortunately. The pain from remembering how easily I was led astray made me want to shut up, but I pressed on. "She did keep secrets from me," I agreed softly. "But Riku…I know her personality. She's always been cruel. Selfish. Unloving. Reading that side of her isn't new to me. I know that she was telling me the truth when she implied my dad is alive."

"I just can't believe her," Riku mumbled.

"Believe in** me**, then," I requested quietly, my soft blue eyes landing on him as I looked up. I walked over to him, stopping right in front of him and gazing at him from my shorter height. "I'm following my heart and my head in this, Riku. I promise I'm not leading you into a wild goose chase."

Riku looked away from my gaze, his eyes set on the ground. At least he was starting to consider what I had to say. Even if he didn't believe Isabella, he could trust me. He had to trust me, because right now, this was the only lead that we had on fixing whatever was wrong with me. He had to remember the initial goal here: they had to discover why I didn't receive my powers when I was eighteen.

"…We have to let your mom in on this," he said after a few moments.

"No," I said in disagreement, not hesitating. "We can't let her know. Can you imagine how devastated she'd be if I was wrong?"

"I thought you were sure you were right."

"Shush, you," I retorted gently, continuing. "Besides, what if she tried to stop us from finding him? I know she loves him and all, but this could be dangerous. She has to think about my safety before anything else."

"And so do I," Riku said. "I don't think this is a good idea."

"Can I be honest with you for a moment?" I asked, keeping my eyes on him as he finally returned my gaze.

"I hope that you're honest for more than just a moment," he said with a slight smile.

His more upbeat facial expression drew a weak smile out of me, even if what I had to say wasn't extremely nice. "Honestly…I don't really care what you think about the danger right now," I said quietly. "This is my dad, Riku. The one loving parent I knew until a few months ago. If he's alive and out there, then I need to find him. Whether I have your permission or not."

Riku's grave expression returned at my words. But that was the truth. He told me a long time ago that since he was so blunt, he could handle any bluntness I threw back at him. And I obviously took him at his word, since I was just very bold. That was unusual for me, but I would be whatever I had to be to find my father. I loved him with all my heart, even after he disappeared when I was just a little girl.

"You won't have my permission," Riku started softly. "But you will have me by your side. I'll help you search for him.

Relief flooded my veins as a smile reappeared on my lips. I didn't hesitate stepping forward and wrapping my arms around him. I was so unbelievably glad to hear that. "Thank you," I said quietly, feeling his arms go around me in return. It meant the world to me that he trusted me this much. It was obvious how much I trusted him, but it was nice to see that he returned the sentiment.

He grunted a response, like this wasn't a big deal. But we both knew that it was. Together, we were going to track my father down. I'd see him again for the first time in twelve years.

Thankfully Riku gave me some time to formulate my plan. He didn't pester me, even if he had no clue what to do until I told him what was going to happen. _How could my dad even be alive?_ I wondered. There were absolutely no signs pointing to it other than what my mother said. But if Dad was alive, then he wasn't in Cadia. Why? Because if he was in Cadia, he would have revealed himself to my mom or me. But why didn't he anyway? Even if he was in another world, he could have made himself known. Was he worried about Isabella hurting him? Was he in danger? It was always a possibility.

If he was in trouble, I'd need help to save him. But that couldn't be my first priority. First, I had to find him. And since the last place I saw him was Twilight Town, that was the best place to start looking. Was he still there after eleven or twelve years? Maybe. Or maybe he left clues that would help me track him down. That was the only small lead I had, so I accepted it. Our first destination would be Twilight Town, and we'd see where we would go from there.

Of course, there was something else we had to take care of as well. My mother. If we didn't return to her within forty hours of leaving to face Isabella, then she was going to come looking for us. Unfortunately, we had to lie to her about what Isabella said to me and what we were doing. I couldn't have even _her _standing in my way. So what would we tell her? I wouldn't tell her anything, since I was such a bad liar. Riku would have to tell her. And I knew that he would hate finding that out; he was actually employed by my mom to keep me safe. And instead of doing that, he was letting me set out on a journey that was possibly dangerous. She would probably freak out if she knew the truth. We'd tell her we had a lead on a way to break the curse and we would need a few days to sort things out. Just me and Riku.

As soon as I explained the plan to Riku, of course he had his problems with it. Lying to her mom was obviously a problem, but he also didn't like that he had to go to her mom by himself. But that was just how things were going to be. Riku would buy her some time and she'd spend the day in Twilight Town trying to find leads on her Dad. That would be tomorrow. For the rest of today, they'd go to Twilight Town together. That was the deal that they eventually reached, though Riku did have one other condition to letting go alone.

He had to be allowed to go back to Sorceress Isabella, alone. He wanted to talk to her one more time to see if she was telling the truth about my dad being alive or not. While I thought that was a stupid idea, I had to give in or he wouldn't go through with my plan.

We left Disney Castle after about an hour of planning, heading to the place that I once called home. Twilight Town. Hopefully my dad left some kind of clue to lead me to where he was, because otherwise, I wouldn't find him.

_I need your help, Dad. Please. _

*…*…*…*…*

Twilight Town hadn't changed at all since I left a few months ago. Of course, that was no surprise to me. It hadn't changed while I was there; it was always the same. Always predictable, always monotonous. Being here gave me a really weird vibe. I used to live here as a normal person. I still was fairly normal, even if I was royalty, but it was still so weird. I wondered if Riku ever felt this weird when he returned home after gaining the Keyblade. He wasn't ordinary anymore; he was extraordinary.

"So weird," I murmured to myself, walking down the path from the train station with Riku right by my side. I knew this town like the back of my hand and yet this wasn't where I belonged. I was a little happy to be back here anyway, despite what happened right before I left. My friends accused me of abandoning them for Riku when that really wasn't true. I couldn't tell them what really happened though for more reasons than one. One reason was that nobody is supposed to know about other worlds; it can disrupt world order. And the other reason I didn't tell was because I literally couldn't. My voice was gone thanks to the spell that Isabella cast on me.

So many bad things happened here…but so many good things too. Most of the good things that happened here were with my friends. They were normally crazy, goofy, and amazing, not cold and heartless like the day that I left. I wondered if I could somehow make amends with them…I still considered them my friends, despite how they snapped at me and make wild accusations.

"What're you thinking?" Riku asked softly, probably responding to my muttering.

"It's just…so strange," I said quietly, looking around the empty shopping area as we kept walking at a calm pace. "This feels like home still, even after everything that happened here. I almost want to stay."

"But you can't," he responded gently. "You're a princess now. Cadia is your home."

"Is it, Riku?" I inquired. I let my eyes wander around the beautifully lit area, the air also warmer than Cadia was. There were kids running around the marketplace, unsupervised and playing a game of tag like they always used to do while I was here. It was like they were programmed to do that. "Home is where the heart is, and right now…I just want to be right here. I feel like I belong here."

"Steph…" he said, voice low and gentle.

"I know," I said softly. "I know you're going to say that I belong in Cadia now. But…I don't know. Being here and recalling everything good that's happened here…it makes me feel whole." For once, I didn't feel bad about my past. Now that I was here, I could actually remember the good things and put them above the bad memories. Maybe I was better off here. Maybe this was where I was meant to be. I knew my mom said that I was going to be the ruler of Cadia one day and that I didn't have a choice, but…

_Again with the "buts",_ I thought, scolding myself. There were two sides to every coin. Cadia had its benefits and so did Twilight Town. Staying here wasn't even a choice though. My title wasn't one that I could give up. I didn't really want to…most of the time. I finally had the chance to be something great! To do something with my life! I had the power to help people…So why wasn't I satisfied with that? Was I really so selfish that I still longed to be normal?

Shaking my head a little, I brought up my thoughts from earlier. "Riku, I have a question," I said softly. When he grunted to encourage me to continue, I did just that. "You ever feel weird when you return to the Islands after a long time?"

"Weird in what sense?"

"Weird like…You've been staying somewhere else for a long time, but then you go back to the place you lived your whole life. All the memories come back and you just…You want to stay there forever, even if you can't."

Riku glanced down at the ground before he answered, his voice quiet. "I feel like that all the time," he said softly. "That's why I try to stay away from the Islands. I love that place so much, even if I once called that place a prison. Now I see it for what it really is. It's a small world, but it's a safe one. Heartless hardly ever attack it and the people are genuine and happy. Almost everything about Destiny Islands is perfect, but not everything. I'm too adventurous to settle down there. So even if it feels like home, it's best that I stay away."

"How do you know you wouldn't be satisfied there?" I asked softly, looking over at him. I sidestepped the kids playing tag, my attention on Riku.

"Sora and I defeated the Organization over two years ago, when I was sixteen," Riku stated. "I lived on the Islands with him and Kairi about a year after that, but eventually, I started sneaking off and fighting Heartless and going on my own mini adventures. Kairi was the first one to notice, since Sora was clueless as always. But they accepted it. The calm lifestyle of the Islands isn't for me now that I know what else is out there. And who else." He looked over and gave me a look, which made me blush. He left the Islands partially because of me, then. Even if he lived in Cadia with me for my sake, it was for his own sake too. He needed an adventure. That was okay. In fact, it made me feel better. How could I want him to leave his loved ones all for my sake? That wasn't fair to him. But if this was really his choice and it wasn't all based on me, then I felt better.

"I just wish that you weren't on this adventure, in all honesty," Riku said, shaking his head as he looked at the path again. "I care about Sora like a brother. I still get nervous whenever he's fighting on his own…Anything can happen, Steph. Anything can happen to him, and anything can happen to you too."

While I was touched by the sincerity, I felt like he was a little paranoid about me getting into trouble. But with all he'd seen in the worlds, how could I question him? He knew far more than I did. "I know how to defend myself," I stated quietly.

"I know. And that helps. But that doesn't change how quickly the tide can change. You can hold your own in a battle against Heartless, but what about super villains? You're not ready for that yet."

"I don't have to be," I said, giving Riku a look. "There's nobody threatening the worlds right now. If there was, you would be out there taking care of it with Sora."

"A new villain can rise at any time."

"And if they do, we'll be ready," I stated confidently. "I have plenty of time to train after I find my dad and figure out why I haven't received my powers."

Riku didn't bother responding. I had to admit, I had really changed since I first met him. I wasn't so shy and reserved anymore. I still was that way a little bit, but I was bolder than I was before. And more stubborn. Those traits must have rubbed off on me from Riku, so he couldn't complain about them. He was a good influence on me though. He wasn't pessimistic too often. My optimistic nature was starting to rub off on him too. We complimented each other well even if we grew up completely differently.

We walked in silence for a few minutes, which was okay. Despite the tenseness that could have lingered from the talk we just had, we were both so focused on other matters that no tension existed. He was focused on Sorceress Isabella and I was focused on my dad. How could two parents create so much drama?

"That's it, huh?" Riku asked softly. I looked up ahead and saw what he was referring to. The house that I called home for fourteen years. This was where I discovered the truth about Isabella. A chill ran down my spine, but I swallowed and nodded to Riku. This was it…My house. My home.

I started forward first. The house was identical to the way that I left it. Nobody bought the house because it was never for sale. Or because they didn't want to. Did they have any idea what happened in this house? Who really lived here? It was a witch who manipulated others into doing her will. She kidnapped me…verbally and emotionally abused me…And yet I couldn't make myself hate her. Instead, I hated myself for not hating her.

The door was locked so nobody would break in and steal the stuff. _Makes sense to me,_ I thought, wordlessly bending down and picking up the key that had previously been under the mat. Twilight Town wasn't a bad place, but there were a few punks who would do something stupid for their own profit.

Was I really ready to face my past? I didn't have a choice now. Unlocking the door, I pushed it open and saw the sunlight creep into the foyer. Everything was **exactly** the way I left it. It was eerie. Nothing was the same in my life, but this place was. It was like it was frozen in time.

After a moment, I realized I was standing still. Before Riku could ask if I was alright, I started walking forward again. Somewhere in here, there had to be clues that led to my Dad's whereabouts. How did he survive anyway? And how did he reportedly die? I didn't even remember that much since I was so little. Six years old was too young to lose a parent. I knew he loved me, so why didn't he come find me? Why didn't he take me away from Isabella?

Too many questions, too little answers. "Okay, um…Riku, why don't you search around down here?" I asked quietly. "I'll…um…do the upstairs."

"Are you sure that's a good idea?" he responded softly. _Why wouldn't it be_? I thought, though the answer immediately came. Upstairs was my mother's bedroom. That was where she betrayed me. And I still had nightmares of that betrayal.

"…Yeah, why don't you do the upstairs?" I said, changing my mind. I couldn't face my whole past in one day. For today, Riku could tackle the room that gave me nightmares. I'd check this floor and the basement for any clues.

Riku grunted, squeezed my shoulder, and then went for the stairs. I watched him go for a second, but then I turned around and shut the front door. I didn't want anyone sneaking up on me while I was searching. We clearly weren't burglars, but if real ones knew that the house was unlocked, they'd come. And I didn't want to face them. Not today or any other day. My dad was priority.

"Where would you hide a clue, Dad?" I mumbled, walking to the living room and seeing the furniture. Hidden between the cushions maybe? No; any clues hidden there could easily be found. In fact, if it was hidden in the living room, the clues could be stumbled upon very easily. He wouldn't risk Isabella finding out he was alive.

But wait…She already knew. How long did she know? Did she actually mean to kill him in the first place? "So many questions," I groaned, walking further into the room. I wouldn't get the answers for a while, though. Not until I found Dad. And to do that, I had to find the clues. If he left any. Bookshelf? No, too obvious. But…That was the only place I could think to look. I knelt down in front of the bookshelf that was only as high as my waist and started pulling out books, flipping through them carefully to see if there was anything there. That was an effortless task, so as I did that, my thoughts wandered.

My dad Terry must have wanted me to find him. I just knew he did! I couldn't accept any other reality. He loved me and I loved him. I was a daddy's girl growing up even if he wasn't in the house by my seventh birthday. I saw in his eyes that he loved me with all his heart, so something severe must have kept him away from me. Maybe he needed to keep my identity from me as long as Isabella could hurt me. Or maybe he was in trouble right now. Or maybe he was looking for me. That was a nice thought, but an unlikely reality. I wasn't the one hiding here. He was.

I searched and searched and searched (and searched) through all the books on the shelf, but there were no hidden notes. No writing on the sides of the pages that could lead me to him, no loose sheets of papers a loving father would leave for his daughter. No nothing.

Riku and I left the house unsuccessful that day, going to sleep in the ship so I wouldn't have to sleep in my old room. I forgot my positive thoughts from earlier; now I was miserable. All the bad memories were back to replace the good and my hope was already running thinner than it originally was.

_I need a sign, Dad. Let me find you. _


	7. Chapter 7: Clues

**Thanks to two of my most faithful reviewers, Crystal4458 and Eddie Camp for reviewing the last chapter. (: This one was actually one of my favorite chapters to write and I'm interested as to how you guys (all the readers) are gonna react. If you have a sec when you're done reading, please review. I know times are especially busy for everyone right now with school (I know from experience). But anywho, I still take the time to spit out chapters so you can take the time to spit out reviews. :P**

**With all that said, enjoy Chapter Seven!**

Chapter Seven: Clues

I didn't sleep in the next day. Not only was I so restless during the night about my father that I couldn't sleep, but the gummi ship itself wasn't extremely comfortable. Besides, I knew how Riku was an early bird, so I couldn't sleep in and hinder him from what he was going to do today. He was going to take the ship and go to Cadia to tell my mom we were searching for answers to fix the curse that was on me. And then after that…He was going to Isabella. Alone.

He wasn't nervous about it, but I was. For once, I was glad I had something to distract myself with so I wouldn't fear for him. He would have a busy day, but so would I. I would search anywhere I could to try and find some sign that my dad was alive. I hoped today would go better than yesterday had, because after hours of searching, we hadn't found anything.

After saying farewell to Riku, I went to my old home by myself to look around. The living room was already searched through and so was Isabella's bedroom. After thinking about it last night, I was pretty sure there weren't any clues hidden in my bedroom. Soon after I found out my dad was gone, I came home from school and found my 'mother' searching through the room for something. Now I realized that she must have been looking to see if Terry left a note for me. It would make sense, since my dad would probably want me to know my identity. But he was a very smart man, so he wouldn't have left something for me where Isabella could find it.

"What do I do, Dad?" I murmured, walking through the hallway in the house. I needed help if I was going to find him. I knew him so well, didn't I? Didn't we have something special in common when I was growing up? Some place in the house we would spend time together and he could say something to me?

Suddenly, I froze, practically able to hear his voice in my head. He always told me one thing: "_Whenever the future looks dim, look back to the past."_ That didn't make much sense since my past was so dark, but maybe he didn't mean it metaphorically. Maybe he meant it literally! "The photo albums!" I said in realization. Looking to the left, I saw the closet where the books were kept. "Perfect," I murmured, opening the door and seeing the books in there. There was probably something hidden in there. And Isabella probably didn't think to look there.

I pulled out the books and headed over to the couch in the living room, sitting down and opening the first book. And as soon as I opened it, I lost my breath. My dad's handwriting was there_."Whenever the future looks dim, look back to the past."_ It was the same message I just thought of, but this proved that he meant for me to take things literally! I was meant to be looking through the book right now, wasn't I?

"W-wait a minute…" I said in confusion. I realized that I was talking to myself, but it didn't matter. The pictures on the first page were gone. Turning to the next page, I saw pictures that weren't in there when I was little. Every single picture that I could see there were rocks. Rocks! The family portraits and snapshots of my life were replaced by pictures of rocks.

Page after page after page there were only rocks. This had to mean something. I went back to the start and began to remove the pictures from their plastic sheets so I could look at the back of the photographs. Was there writing or something? At first, there were no notes written on the back of the pictures. But on the back of one random picture, there were two words: _"Clue One"._ Clue one? This was connected to him vanishing! It had to be!

I kept the picture separate from the rest before I opened the next book. The family pictures were gone again. Instead, the album was full of pictures of sunsets. Sunsets? I took the pictures out one by one until I found the one that had writing on the back of it. _"Clue two". What on earth does this mean? _

Regardless of the questions, I went for the third and final photo album. But those pictures confused me as well. Shovels. Every single picture was a shovel. "Dad, what're you trying to say here…?" I murmured to myself. These three clues made absolutely no sense. But I still took out all the pictures of shovels and found the one that had _"Clue Three"_ written on the back of it and put it with the other pictures. I didn't know if these specific ones held significance, but for now, I'd focus on the general.

I just found three clues in one sitting. And something told me that these clues should have been enough to lead me to the next step of finding my dad, but I was so confused about what these thinks could mean! When I thought rocks, I thought rocks in the ground. Was I supposed to dig something up somewhere with a shovel? Where we watched the sun set? But we didn't watch the sunset in one specific place!

What was I missing here? I needed time to think about it. Hopefully something would click if I was lucky.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Riku

Later that same day, Riku exited the portal the King created for him and entered the Realm Between. He spoke to Queen Andrea in Cadia and told her what Steph wanted him to say; he said that they couldn't break the curse just by seeing Isabella and that they were still looking for an antidote. He bought them a few days time at least. He just hoped that was enough time to make some progress, because he didn't like lying to the queen. It wasn't right, since she was Steph's mom. She was so concerned about her daughter's health…

And why wouldn't she be? Her daughter was taken away when she was just three or four years old. Steph just returned to Cadia a few months ago, and now she was already running off into a possibly dangerous situation. Andrea just didn't know how dangerous. But Riku did, which was why he was here to speak to somebody once again about the situation.

"You've come alone?"

Riku's icy eyes landed on the person who spoke to him, seeing her stoic expression. He was here to see Sorceress Isabella and get some kind of information. He was hoping for something that would get Steph to stop this wild goose chase of hers, but if he couldn't get that, he wanted information to help her find her father. "Steph doesn't need to be here to see what I'm going to do."

"You admire her innocence that much, huh?" Isabella said as a cold smile started spreading on her dark expression. "I'm shocked she has any left. She's been released to the real world now and all the darkness that's out there. Soon, she'll find that following the Light isn't so easy."

_Stop talking about her like that,_ Riku thought bitterly. He realized he made a mistake bringing her up. He'd change that right now. "Is Queen Andrea's husband really alive?"

"You mean Stephanie's father," she corrected. "There's no need to try to disconnect yourself from the situation, Keyblade wielder. This is more personal than what you're making it out to be."

"Is he alive?" Riku asked again without humoring her. He gazed at her with hard eyes, hating that smile on her lips. She looked like evil incarnate to him, and he knew something about evil. How could nobody have realized who she was before? How couldn't he have sensed something off about how Steph talked about her 'mother'?

"Unfortunately."

Riku blinked. He was really alive? Isabella admitted it that easily? "He is alive?" he said dumbly, unsure of how else to respond.

"Need I repeat myself ten times?" the witch responded coolly. "And here I heard you were the brighter of the two Keybladers."

Riku growled at the shot taken at both him and his best friend, but he was smart enough not to take the bait. He was here for one purpose: to help Steph. "Where is he, then?" Isabella remained silent at that comment, so Riku moved one step closer to her. He had an intimidating glare that most people knew not to challenge, but the sorceress only laughed at him.

"Oh please. Is that really supposed to frighten me? I'm not scared of you, boy."

"You should be," he said lowly. He flexed his hand and nearly summoned his Keyblade to him, but he restrained himself. If he lost his temper, Mickey would pull him out of this Realm. His emotions had to be in check or else this place would mess with his mind.

"I believe that you're the one who's afraid," Isabella said with an icy smile. "You're afraid for Stephanie. How romantic."

"You shut up!" he spat.

"So I've hit a nerve…Good. Despite your calm exterior, you're pretty easy to get to. But you already know that, don't you?"

Riku didn't humor her by speaking. But she did humor herself and just kept prattling on.

"But of course, there are people out there who know how to rub you the right way. You were such a good slave to the Darkness…"

He froze. "How do you know about that?"

"I know everything, boy." When Riku released a stunned grunt, she only laughed. "If you thought Maleficent was bad, think again. I'm in a league above that fairy."

_I don't believe you_, Riku instantly thought, glaring at her in silence. He knew Maleficent better than anybody else, and he knew how terrible she was. Cold, heartless, manipulative, selfish, dark…And her powers were extraordinary. There was no way there could be a sorceress greater than her. If Isabella was that great, she wouldn't have been captured.

"I'll leave you to your thoughts, I suppose," Isabella said, turning away from Riku and gazing at the nothingness of the Realm Between.

The young man shut his eyes, fighting the urge to give into his emotions. He was in control here, not Isabella. That was why he couldn't do anything extreme and lose that control. So far, there was no progress being made here. He knew now that Terry was alive, but Steph already figured that out. Now he just had to figure out how. And why. And where.

"Where is Terry?" he asked in an icy tone.

"I don't know. But soon, Stephanie will. She's a smart girl; she'll figure it out soon enough. I raised my daughter to be-"

Isabella didn't get to finish her sentence. In a movement so quick that he was almost a blur, Riku appeared right in front of Isabella. He grabbed her throat and lifted her half a foot off the ground with one arm. "She's not your daughter!" he boomed, screaming in her face. How dare she refer to Steph as her daughter? The witch was her captor, not her mother.

The witch, however, was also pure evil. She cackled a laugh despite Riku's hold on her. The hold tightened because of that laughter. "Go ahead and kill me," she dared him. "This won't end with me."

Riku was about to question her when he heard a voice from nowhere call out to him. "Riku! That's enough!" It was King Mickey calling to him, since the mouse king was observing this from his Realm. He knew trouble when he saw it. Riku would kill Isabella if he had the chance, but he couldn't be allowed to do it. They needed Isabella alive. He dropped her from his hold and watched her fall to the ground, where she couldn't help but cough and sputter to catch her breath.

_I'll be back for you later,_ Riku thought as he glared at her. He turned around and saw that Mickey opened a portal for him, as he suspected. Mickey wisely didn't trust him with Isabella right now when he was angry. He turned around and walked through the portal. Upon reaching the other side and seeing King Mickey's expression, he knew that he was in for a lecture. He sighed and glanced behind him to see the portal disappear, trapping him in Disney Castle with a stern friend of his.

This wasn't going to be fun.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Steph

I finished up digging the top of Sunset Hill, having found an old shovel in our basement that I could use. It was tricky business getting there…sort of. It was a school day still, so not too many people were around to question what I was doing with a shovel. It helped I came through the tunnels system too; I couldn't risk people stopping me. If they did…I didn't know what I'd do.

But I dug a hole right in the middle of the area and there was nothing. Nothing at all. Thinking about it now, I didn't believe that I had the right place. The first clue was the rocks, and the soil here wasn't rocky at all. It had sunsets and the shovel obviously could be applied anywhere, but still…Sunsets and Sunset Hill seemed to make sense to me, even if me and my dad didn't come here often when I was growing up.

Sighing, I filled the hole back up with dirt. I had no clue where else to look. Rocks and sunsets and shovels…A graveyard? _Ew no!_ I immediately thought, shaking my head to myself. You couldn't see the sunset from the graveyard anyway. And no way was I going to go around digging in a place that was so associated with death. No way.

I patted the dirt on the hole to smooth it out before I turned around to head home. I needed a quiet place to think. But that was when I realized something.

I wasn't alone.

"S-Steph?"

_John_, I thought in awe, seeing one of my old best friends. He had grown up more in the past few months I wasn't here; his blond hair was more shaggy than before and he had a small patch of hair right beneath his lips. He looked….incredible. He was cute before, but now he was handsome. "H-hi," I stuttered.

"What're you doing here? And with the…" John motioned to the item in my hands.

I glanced down at the shovel, my eyes widening. I nearly threw it to the side so that I didn't have it in my hands, but what good would that do? Clearly I was guilty of something if I had a shovel in my hands. "…It's a long story," I responded quietly, glancing back up at him.

John's brown eyes hardened. "A long story? Like the story where you didn't ditch us?"

Immediately, I remembered back to the day I saw him last. It was the day Isabella cast a spell on me and made me lose my voice. But it was also the day that Riku took me away from this world. I hadn't returned since. That was besides the point though. My friends confronted me after I lost my voice and accused me of ditching them for Riku. They said I wasn't their friend anymore because they didn't know the truth. That killed me inside, to know that my friends weren't as loyal as I expected them to be. They threw me out like I was nothing.

"It is a long story…similar to that," I said quietly. The shovel was related to finding my dad, which was related to Cadia which was related to me leaving Twilight Town so suddenly. Could I tell him? I knew Riku said that other people couldn't know about multiple worlds existing, but this was John. He was one of my best friends and he was deeply in love with me (according to my former friends). I could trust him, couldn't I?

"I don't know what happened to you, Steph," John said quietly as the bitterness in his eyes remained. His voice was more sad than anything else, though. Even if he was eighteen now, an adult, he had the innocence of a child. Similar to me. "You used to be so loyal to us, but you started keeping secrets from us ever since Riku came around. You traded us for him."

"I didn't mean to," I said weakly. "I didn't have a choice, John…"

"You always have a choice."

"No…no you don't," I whispered, shifting my gaze to the ground. "I used to believe that too. That I was in control of my fate. But everything started spiraling out of control soon after I met him, and I just…I didn't have a choice but to go with him."

"Why didn't you have a choice?" John asked.

In awe, I looked up at him. "You'll…you'll hear me out?" Last time, he was a part of the group who walked away from me without giving me much chance to explain myself. Not that I could anyway because I didn't have my voice, but—

"I have to know the truth," he said softly as he interrupted my thoughts. "I know you…Or I thought I did. I think I still do. You're a pretty easy person to read, and seeing you now…As cheesy as it sounds, it seems like there's more to this than I can see."

A small, somewhat sad smile appeared on my lips. "You've changed since I left," I stated softly. He was wiser and finally spoke his mind, though he was still pretty soft spoken. I wished I could have seen him change into this nice young man. I wished…I could have stayed here and had a normal life. Possibly with him next to me.

"And so did you," he said quietly. My smile remained as I nodded faintly in agreement. For a few moments, we just studied each other. He changed for the better and I hoped that I had done the same. I hoped that I was a better person than when I left. Braver, wiser, stronger…Those were the things I strived for. I wanted to be brave enough to have the courage face the uncertain future, wise enough to know how to face it, and stronger so that I could actually do it.

"…Can you tell me what happened?" John asked after a minute.

I hesitated, but then nodded. "It's a long story, so…" I motioned for him to follow me over to the bench. Thankfully as I walked over, I heard his footsteps right behind me. He was really giving me a chance. I couldn't have been more thankful. And in a way, I was glad that he was the only person here to listen to me. My other friends—or ex friends—were great, but they weren't the best listeners.

The two of us sat down on the bench together and I started to explain. I started from the very beginning. I was actually born in a world named Cadia to the king and queen. A few years into my life, there was a coup where my mother and father were both overthrown by a sorceress who was angry that I would take the thrown instead of her when my parents were aged. And while my parents could do nothing to stop the coup, my dad at least fooled Isabella into thinking he was on her side. Together, they kidnapped me and brought me to this world, where I would grow up blissfully unaware of my royal heritage. At least, they planned for me to be ignorant until I was eighteen years old and received the powers passed onto royalty of Cadia.

But things didn't go according to plan. Sora and Riku, two Keyblade wielders, started hunting minions of Isabella. They sensed her Darkness here but couldn't track her down, so they kept coming back. When Isabella realized this, she tried to trap them in this world by covering it in Darkness. While she succeeded in the latter, she failed to trap them here. And they escaped this world with one other person: me.

Without going into full detail, I spoke of how I was kidnapped and taken back to Tebros, which was really Cadia under the rule of three dark men. They intended to kill me so that there would be nobody to threaten their rule, but Sora and Riku showed up and saved the day. After Cadia was restored to its former glory, I had the chance to speak to Queen Andrea, who revealed my past to me and that I was a princess.

However, I didn't believe her. Or maybe I did and I was too scared to admit it. I ran back to Twilight Town to see Isabella for myself. But it was a nearly fatal mistake. As soon as Isabella realized that her most powerful minions in Cadia were defeated and I knew my identity, she tried to kill me. She only succeeded in casting a spell to take away my voice, though. Hence why I couldn't explain to my friends what happened to me.

Then Riku, Sora and I spent days searching for an antidote. We eventually found it, and that was when I returned to Cadia as their princess. Normal life in Twilight Town wasn't an option, not after all that happened. And not after I figured out who I was and what my destiny was. I was to rule Cadia, whether I wanted to or not.

After a few months of training, my eighteenth birthday came around and I didn't receive my powers. Riku (who lived in Cadia with me as the head of my security) and I set out together to find the cure, but we found something else instead: we found out that my father was alive. And so I searched my old home for clues. The three clues—Rocks, sunsets, and shovels, led me to digging up the top of this hill with a shovel so that I could find another lead as to his whereabouts.

And that was my story right up until John caught me here digging up the earth.

John was pretty much silent throughout the whole telling of the story. The only time he spoke was to ask a question or get clarification. Now that it was done, I didn't look over at him. Did he believe my insane story? It was a little too insane for anybody to make up, even me, since I had a vivid imagination.

"First of all, I believe you," John said quietly after a minute.

"…You do?" I couldn't help but whisper. I looked over at him, my soft blue eyes landing on him as he stared out ahead of him. When his head turned and his brown eyes landed on me, I nearly felt my heart melt.

"I do," he responded softly. "You were always too good for Twilight Town, Steph. I've always believed that." Awestruck by his kind words, I didn't know how to react to his next action. He lifted one of his hands as he turned towards me more, his soft fingers trailing across my cheek as he tucked back some of my brunette hair. "And I always knew you were too good for me, too."

"That's not true," I whispered. "You're…I mean, you…You're incredible. You've always been such a good friend to me, and you trusted me when you had no reason to. You just listened to my crazy story, and…"

As I spoke, there was something else happening. My cheeks started burning bright red and so did John's as we both leaned closer to each other. His hand lingered on my cheek even after my hair was out of my face. His thumb briefly ran over my skin and then it happened: His lips connected with mine in a gentle kiss.

And I kissed him back. I closed my eyes and felt moisture growing behind them. This was the type of man I always pictured myself with. Sweet and sincere. Not tough and sarcastic like Riku was sometimes. All my former companions said John loved me, but I never realized before how much I liked him. But now I did.

After a few moments, the kiss ended with his withdrawal. His brown eyes opened and landed on my teary blue ones as his thumb again ran over my skin. "I've always loved you," he whispered. "But now it's time I let you go."

_But…I don't want you to_, I thought as I watched him rise from the spot next to me. John offered me a chance to live a more normal life, away from sorceresses and bodyguards. Simple happiness and innocence was what he offered me. "Thank you for telling me," John said quietly as I couldn't find my voice. "And good luck finding your dad, Steph. I know that you can do it."

Standing there and seeing me with teary eyes must have compelled his next action. He took a small step closer to me and bent down, giving me a small kiss on the top of my smooth brown hair before he turned around and left Sunset Hill, leaving me all by myself and taking my hope of ever being in a normal relationship with him.


	8. Chapter 8: Conflicting Hearts

**Hey there, faithful readers! I can't believe I almost forgot to publish this tonight! Sorry about that; life has been crazy hectic lately. I'm sure you all understand how that is as your school semesters come to an end. Still, thank you so much for all the reviews for the last chapter! (Angie-ange, Luthien Eriol, SSBTMM, Crystal4458, and Naivette). You guys are seriously encouraging. And if you other readers want to be encouraging like these guys, review! It only takes a minute, and like I said before, if I have time to pop out chapters, you have time to pop out reviews. ;)**

**Alright, enough of that. Here's the new chapter! **

Chapter Eight: Conflicting Hearts

Riku promised to come back the same day that he left, but he didn't. By the time nightfall came around, I realized that I only had one choice on where to stay the night: My old house.

It was so creepy approaching my former home as the sky dimmed and the night approached. No shadows appeared around me as the clouds covered the moon. Houses filled with light were sheltered from the darkness of night, and the dark of night was sheltered from being exposed to the light due to blinds and shades keeping the light inside. Light and Darkness weren't meant to mingle. But here I was, dwelling in the darkness of the night when my heart was full of light. Life didn't make sense. The air grew cold and the wind burned my skin. But not as badly as the memories burned a hole in my heart.

If Riku was here right now and he knew my thoughts, I knew what'd he say. He'd tell me that my past memories could only hurt me if I wanted to. I could focus on the good memories instead of the bad if I wanted to. But I couldn't. I couldn't just ignore the bad memories now that they resurfaced and were right in front of my face. It was all thanks to the person I once called my mother.

But tonight I found some comfort in a person I once called my friend. Could I call him that again? Yes, I believed that I would. John was my friend. Nothing more, obviously, since he just said he was letting me go. He never had a hold on me in the first place. We had the same friends and became friends ourselves somewhere along the way but nothing more. Even if he said me loved me…and now I realized I may have loved him in return.

But I already shared true love's kiss with another. How could I have even let John kiss me? Or better yet, how could I have kissed him back? Even if Riku and I were only dating a few months (and in secrecy), I couldn't ignore that he and I shared a special connection. He was my knight in shining armor and I was his princess. At least I wasn't the damsel in distress. I could take care of myself most of the time, like I was taking care of myself now. I wouldn't depend on people needlessly and be a burden to them.

Collapsing on my bed was only easy because of the exhaustion. Memories flashed before my mind the moment my head landed on the pillow. Last time I slept here, it was because I was knocked out by Isabella. I woke up because of Riku speaking to me. I could never forget those kind words of his.

"_You think I'm strong, but I need to see your eyes right now…I need to know I haven't lost you completely,"_ he had said to my unconscious form. At that time, I knew his worry was sky high. He found me unconscious as Isabella cast spells on me earlier and he hadn't known how bad the damage was. And it was bad, but that wasn't what I wanted to focus on right now. I wanted to keep listening to his voice in my head.

"_Listen, I don't let many people into my life. Most people have to force their way in. But you, you just suddenly appeared in my life and ever since then, I've been the one trying to get into you. And I just—There's so much more I still have to figure out. I want to know you more, and I want to be with you. " _

Instead of cheering me up, the thoughts made me depressed. Riku and I were closer now than we were at that time and yet I found I was happier with him then than I was now. He was a terrific guy; I realized that. I just…I missed the times where he was honest and gentle instead of sarcastic and overprotective. Things had changed. And not for the better. _What happened to us?_

Eventually, after much tossing and turning, I managed to fall asleep.

*…*…*…*…*

The next morning I woke up to the sun shining through my window. It washed over my entire body until the warmth made me want to suffocate. Or crawl into a fetal position and stay in the light forever so that I'd always be so warm. Not cold like my heart had been lately. I had to force myself out of the bed though so that I could keep searching for my dad. I had the clues; now I just needed to follow them to him. It was possible for me to do this, wasn't it? It had to be. He wouldn't have left the clues unless he trusted me to find him. I couldn't let him down…

I held back a groan and rolled over on the bed so that I was facing the rest of the room instead of a wall. Time to get up. I pushed myself up into a sitting position as my feet hit the ground, a yawn leaving my tired lips. I hung my head and kept my eyes shut, weary and alone.

When I lifted my head and looked across the room, I realized that "alone" couldn't describe me anymore. Riku had arrived at some point to change that. As he leaned against the wall with arms folded over his chest, he kept doing what he had been doing all along: staying silent and staring at me.

But the silence didn't last long, especially when he saw my facial expression. "…Sorry I was late," he said quietly.

I only shook my head. "It's fine."

The silence lingered in the air again for a few seconds as Riku stared at me, reading me. "You had a rough night," he said, not stating it as a question. It was obvious that was true.

"Yeah, I did," I agreed.

"Did something happen? Or are you just upset you had to stay here last night?"

"Nothing happened." That was a lie. John kissing me wasn't "nothing".

Riku believe the lie even if I wasn't a good liar. He must have had something else on his mind. And when he spoke, I realized that my assumption was correct. "The King kept me tied up in Disney Castle for a few hours."

I nodded faintly, humming as well. That was okay. I knew that Riku was going to Cadia and then Disney Castle…and then to the Realm Between. I didn't want to ask about how that went, since it could have been bad.

"…On the bright side, I'm as sure as you are that your dad is alive now."

"Wait, what?" I asked. Seriously? "What made you come to that conclusion?"

"Isabella said so."

_But she said so before_, I thought._ Why didn't you believe her then? And why didn't you believe me? I _ignored the questions and asked Riku another one about the same topic. "Did she say where he is?"

Riku shook his head.

"Great," I sighed. I fell back down so I was laying on my back, staring up at the ceiling in silence. Of course I had the clues to follow so that I could find my dad, but I was stumped with those. And Riku would probably nag me while searching, since he had been doing a lot of that lately. I had to wonder what was going on with our relationship. This wasn't where I pictured us to be…I thought we'd both be happy, but we weren't really. My life was practically a fairytale story with how I met Riku and yet we didn't have our happy ending. But…reality didn't always end well.

"Sorry," Riku said quietly. "I tried finding out more, but I couldn't."

"That's okay," I murmured.

"…No, it's not," he disagreed softly. "I basically left you alone for nothing yesterday. And something clearly happened, since you're so down in the dumps."

He saw through my act after all? I tried not to let that show as I attempted to cover it up. "It was a rough night," I stated truthfully.

"Maybe, but there's more to it than that, isn't there?"

_**Drat**_**,** I thought. I lifted an arm to cover my eyes, a sigh leaving my lips again. "I'm just frustrated, Riku. Extremely frustrated."

"How can I fix it?" Riku asked. And that response ticked me off for some reason.

"I don't want you to fix anything," I said in agitation. "Because you can't."

"W-what? What makes you say that?"

"Logic. I know you're used to facing a situation and having the power to change things, but you can't solve all the world's problems! You don't have the ability to and that's not what you're supposed to be doing anyway."

Taken aback by my harsh tone, Riku hesitated a second before responding. "What am I supposed to do, then?" he asked quietly.

"I just want you to be by my side, Riku. _Help me_. Don't try to remove me from the situation anymore, because I need to face this whether you want me to or not." I paused before adding another comment, on a roll. "And don't act so cynical towards me, my thoughts, or my actions. I managed to live nearly eighteen years without you by my side and I did just fine."

"Geez Steph, why don't you tell me how you really feel?" Riku grumbled.

I sat up and stared at him, seeing his bitter expression. "Seriously? You're not even going to take what I have to say to heart?"

"Not really," he said honestly. "Because you did survive those seventeen plus years just fine. But things are completely different now, so you can't even judge your ability to face the future right now."

"That's bull," I spat. Now he was getting me angry. What was his deal? "I know what I can and can't handle and how I cope with situations. You can't tell me you know better than I do how to face this."

"Actually, I can. I've faced situations like this in the past and coping with them isn't easy. I'm just trying to look out for you."

"I don't need you to look out for me! I need you to be a friend and support me."

"I still don't believe that's true, no matter how many ways you keep rephrasing it!"

"Well why not?" I practically hollered. "In the past, you praised me for how strong I was to face such uncertainty. And now you take it all back? Is that it?"

"You're the one forcing me to!" he spat. "You're acting totally immature and reckless. You don't even listen to a word I say anymore-"

"You don't listen to a word** I** say!" I interrupted. "You're so thickheaded. You think you can fix everything and fix me, but you can't. I have my flaws whether you like it or not. One of them is that I am my father's daughter." I shook my head, building up the courage to keep speaking. "My father…He taught me to never give up hope. And I won't! Even if I have to do something crazy and sink into the Darkness to save him, I will."

"Don't talk like that!" Riku roared. He took a few quick steps forward and knelt down in front of the bed, grabbing my upper arms and pulling me up so I was standing. "You don't know how bad the Darkness is."

My eyes stung with tears. "And you don't know how bad it is to be separated from your dad when you know he's alive but out of your reach."

Finally, **finally**, Riku heard what I had to say. His eyes softened as he loosened his grip on my arms to something more gentle. "No I don't," he agreed softly. "But Steph…I know how other troubles will rise up from this. I know trouble when I see it and I just want to keep you as far away from it as I can. …I'm sorry to say this, but I don't know if you can handle it all."

_You don't have faith in me anymore_? That hurt to hear…a lot. I thought he would always be on my side, always backing me up… "What did I do to make you lose faith in me?" I asked weakly.

"Nothing," Riku said quietly, lifting a hand and wiping my bangs out of my teary eyes. "I just…I just know you more now than I did before. And you're so…naïve. Innocent. And I adore that about you. You don't get pleasure from putting anybody down; you always want to do the right thing. You act like you can face every problem in the world and not have serious consequences from it…It's like a child trusting in God that things will always work out in the end. And I believe things do work out, but I'm afraid to see what will happen to you in the mean time. I don't want you to lose that side of yourself."

My eyes softened at Riku's response, my face reddening because of his compliments. Many could view innocence as bad, but he didn't. And neither did I. "So that's it then?" I whispered. "You've been so overbearing lately because you're scared for me?"

"Yeah."

That simple response made me feel pathetic for insulting him the way that I had. "I'm sorry I didn't see it sooner," I whispered. Everything around me was just so overwhelming that it was hard to see the positives. I thought Riku was just being a jerk for no reason…But he was really trying to shelter me because of his own fears, not my own abilities or inability.

"No…I'm sorry you had to suffer because of my fears," Riku whispered. He leaned down and connected his forehead with mine, his hand still on my cheek as we stood in very close proximity. "We both got wrapped up in ourselves…We should have tried gaining each other's perspective."

"Agreed," I said quietly. "I'll try harder from now on."

"Diddo."

A small smile appeared on my lips as I faintly shook my head. My bangs got tangled with some of Riku's, but I didn't care, especially since we were so close and not separating right away. "'Diddo'? That's all you have to say?"

A small laugh left Riku's lips, the sound heavenly to me. "I guess I have a few more things to say," he said softly. "I know you don't want me fixing anything, so what do you want me to do?"

"Just stay by my side," I whispered. "Support me. And have faith in me. You may think my innocent, naïve nature will shatter easily, but I know it won't. I survived Isabella, didn't I? As long as I have hope, I can face anything."

"You make it sound so simple," Riku said in a hushed tone.

"Some things in life are simple, believe it or not," I stated quietly. There wasn't much out there that was simple, but I preferred to keep my faith that way. I believed that things would work out in the end. Somehow, some way. As long as I knew I'd make it out okay in the end, I could stand in the shadows and await the Light that will appear and save me.

"I wish I had simple faith like you do."

"You can."

"How?" he asked softly. "How can I always have hope? What is there to have faith in?"

"Destiny," I responded quietly. "Fate…The Light…Some greater power is watching out for us. I know I'm chasing shadows in the dark right now with my search for my Dad, but I have faith that because of some governing principle out there, things will be okay. Even when I really find myself questioning things, I've never really lost faith. Not completely."

"It's so hard to have faith in the unknown. I'm not good at that kind of thing…"

"I don't think anyone is," I said with a weak laugh. "It's easier to have faith in people, but people can't fix everything. But somehow things always seem to fall into place, so I'll put my faith in whatever makes that happen."

"And I think I may do the same."

"Mm," I hummed with a small smile. "I'm glad to hear that."

Riku hmphed softly, running his thumb over my cheek again as he lowered his forehead to go against mine. "You really are something," he murmured.

"Something good I hope," I stated quietly in response. Despite the closeness of Riku's face, I still kept my eyes opened and gazed at his. In their aqua depths, I saw more compassion than I had seen in a very long time. This was the Riku that I grew to know and care about. He was finally back.

"Of course," he said with a small smile. "You know, I'm glad you're not afraid to put me in my place. Everyone else was always too scared to say anything to me."

"What, because of your size?" I asked with an arched brow.

"Something like that," Riku said, laughing softly. "I'm pretty intimidating, don't you think?"

"Maybe at first. But you're a big softy on the inside."

"Am not."

"Are too."

"Nuh-uh."

I laughed, faintly shaking my head against Riku's. "Yes you are," I stated softly. "You care for every friend you've ever met, especially Sora and Kairi. I didn't get to see you much with Kairi, but you act more like Sora's big brother than just a friend." When I saw his half-defeated expression, I held back another small laugh. "Don't try to deny it."

He sighed, weaving his fingers into my brunette locks as he closed his eyes. "I think it's time we changed the subject."

"No way," I said in good nature. "Not when I'm right."

"Who said you were right?"

"I did. So take that, mister-"

My response was interrupted by a distraction, one that was definitely meant to take me away from the topic. Riku had leaned forward and connected his lips to mine in a kiss, and for the first time in a long time, we would actually be able to kiss without fear of interruption by castle servants. Fighting the urge to smile, I closed my eyes and set a hand on his shoulder to return the affection. Even during the kiss, though, my thoughts were wandering.

Riku may have insisted he wasn't a softy, but he couldn't deny that he was a lot of the time. He loved his friends, and even if he didn't show it too often by words, he showed it through his actions. He was fiercely protective and devoted to Sora and Kairi. And I liked to think that he was that devoted to me as well even if we hadn't known each other our whole lives. Regardless, he had a reputation to keep as a tough guy, so I wouldn't ruin it.

Those weren't the only thoughts in my head, though. Unfortunately, this kiss reminded me of another. John's. He kissed me and I kissed him back. It was a satisfying kiss, but it was very different from this one. Honestly…I didn't know which one I preferred. That terrified me.

My boyfriend withdrew from the kiss and kept his hand partially on my cheek and partially in my hair as he spoke. "Guess we should get back to searching," he stated softly.

"I'd love that," I whispered.

I felt Riku's head move in a nodding motion against my forehead as he gently pulled back and took a small step away so that we could focus on our discussion. Hopefully it'd distract me from thinking about John. "So, did you make any progress yesterday?" he asked.

"A little. I found three clues, and I'm fairly certain that that's all I'm going to get."

"Only three? How come?"

I shrugged. "A few reasons. One is that my dad always liked the number three. Another is that those clues should be enough to lead me to him. But…"

"…But you can't figure out the clues," Riku finished for me. Humming, I nodded. I should have been able to figure this out, but I just couldn't! The three clues should have meant something to me, but I blocked out most of my childhood because of all the bad times where my mom yelled at me and my dad wasn't allowed to comfort me properly because of her. Riku soon interrupted my thoughts by speaking again. "I'm guessing the clues are connected to you so that only you can figure it out…"

"I guess," I agreed with another shrug. "I don't even know. They're so random. I found three photo albums that were supposed to have family pictures in them, but instead, they were each filled with different pictures. But each book had pictures of the same items, you know? Like one book had all pictures of rocks, one had pictures of all sunsets, and the other had all pictures of shovels."

"Rocks, sunsets and shovels?"

"I know…It's so random. I know it's supposed to mean something to me, but this isn't making any sense to me at all."

Riku hummed, glancing at the doorway before he looked back to me. "Can I see those photo albums?"

"Yeah…they're downstairs in the living room," I said, turning and starting out of the room. I slipped on my shoes when I was by the doorway and walked down the hall while hoping that I wouldn't have to come back to that room again. Too many bad memories.

As we walked down the stairs and entered the living room, I remembered that I had three of the pictures in my back pocket. They were probably a little crumbled, but those were the pictures that had my dad's writing on them. Were they significant for some reason? I kept them with me just in case they were. I couldn't afford to lose the clues that would lead me to my father.

When we walked into the living room, I stopped dead in my tracks and gazed at the empty floor.

"What? What's wrong?" Riku asked upon noticing my expression.

"The albums…they're gone!" I gasped. "I left them right there!" I was absolutely sure about it! In my rush to get a shovel and go to Sunset Hill before anybody would catch me there, I left the books on the floor in front of the couch. Were they there last night when I got home from talking to John? When did they vanish?

"Are you sure you didn't misplace them?"

"Positive. They were right there…" What did this even mean? I didn't touch them and clearly Riku didn't either. He acted like he hadn't seen them at all, but maybe he wasn't in the room before. It didn't make much of a difference because I knew that neither he nor I would take them. Somebody else came into this house, whether I was here or not.

_Is somebody else looking for my dad?_

A sudden knock on the front door jolted me out of my panicked thoughts, making Riku jump faintly as well. Did anybody even know I was here? Who would be at the door? I glanced at Riku but then started towards the door with him right on my heels.

I cautiously opened it and saw the person on the other side, though I was confused about why he was here. "John?"

"Hey," my friend John said, a little breathless and excited as he stood right outside the front door on the porch. "I was up for a while last night trying to figure out the clues that your dad left for you. I think I know where he is."


	9. Chapter 9: Hate

**I decided to post this chapter early, just because I could. (: With the arrival of Christmas Break, I should be able to get a lot more writing done with the story and start posting new chapters every 2 weeks again. No guarantee on that yet, but I'm gonna work really hard so it'll probably happen. **

**Thank you guys for all the reviews lately! SSBTMM, Naivette, Crystal4458, Luthien Eriol, and Eddie camp. Glad you guys are really analyzing the chapters and characters; I appreciate you guys for doing that. This chapter's a really, really deep one in my opinion. One of the most shocking ones. First some responses to people's reviews:**

**SSBTMM, I've never seen "Ghost" (I don't even really know what it is xP) So no, I wasn't making a reference to anything.  
>Naivette, you smell a love triangle with everything. xD<br>Crystal, I'm glad you appreciate the character depth! It's good to know that I'm doing a nice job making people who are very real and relatable. **

Chapter Nine: Hate

"Are you positive about this, John?" I asked nervously, shifting nervously on my seat as I sat between John and Riku. It was so bizarre sitting between the two guys that both cared for me. While John knew Riku cared, Riku had no idea about John. And it was going to stay that way; we had bigger things to be concerned about.

John said that he knew where my dad was after thinking about the clues. And of course I believed him; he wouldn't lie to me about such a thing. Or anything at all since he clearly still liked me even if he "let me go". Even if it was very obvious to me, Riku didn't seem to notice. That was completely shocking to me since he was so observative all the time, but I wasn't complaining. I could hardly focus on John and Riku when I was thinking about my dad. We were heading towards him now, on the train to the beach because of John's insistence.

"I'm positive this is at least where he wanted you to go next," John said as he interrupted my thoughts. "But you said you didn't know if these clues would lead you right to him, right?"

"Unfortunately," I responded, scrunching my nose. I assumed that this would lead me to his location, but John just pointed out that that could be wrong. What if this riddle would lead me to another clue? And then another and then another? How impossible would it be to figure out where he was if I couldn't decipher the first set of clues on my own? _Please, please let us find him here…_I prayed.

"Well, whether we find him here or not, this is the next step. Can I see those pictures you have?"

"Oh, yeah, sure," I said. I stood up briefly on the train and reached into my back pocket as I pulled out the three pictures I kept on me. Out of all the pictures in the photo albums, these three had either "Clue One", "Clue Two", or "Clue Three" written on the back of them. These were the only pictures I had left since the others were missing for some reason.

I extended my hand and gave John the pictures as I sat back down on my seat, seeing him flip from the rocks to the shovel and then to sunset. "Ah ha, here it is," John murmured.

"Hm?" _What's that supposed to mean?_

"The sunset was what helped me figure out what the other clues meant," John explained. "Well…sort of. The only thing that makes sense with the clues of rocks, shovels, and sunsets would be Sunset Hill, but you already checked there. And that doesn't make sense anyway since that place isn't really a significant place to your dad. But what if it's not a sunset? This picture looks more like a sunrise to me."

Sunrise? So the clues were rocks, shovels and sunrises. "I still don't get it," I confessed quietly.

John looked over and gave me a funny look, though he wasn't overly critical of me. "Are you trying to connect these clues to your past?" he asked, trying to give me a hint.

"I am, but honestly…I don't remember much of my past. I purposely shut out a lot of it because of…" I trailed off, knowing that John now had enough information to fill in the rest. My past was purposely forgotten, or at least buried deep within my mind, because of Isabella. I didn't want to remember her, and she was attached to almost every single memory I had. I remembered loving my father, I remembered his voice, and his character, but specific events…Those I didn't know so much. Did that have to do with why I couldn't figure out the clues?

John understood what went unsaid. "Okay, well…Do you remember when we were little that our parents always brought us to the beach?"

I looked down at my knees, seeing both Riku's and John's on either side of me as I tried to remember. "…Yeah," I said after a few seconds. Now that he mentioned it, I remembered it surprisingly well. John and I had been friends ever since we were children. Our dads had gotten really close and so had our mothers. Or at least, his mom liked my mom. The two of them always walked off on their own while our dads took us to the beach. Those days…They were incredible. I got away from my mom and I had privacy with my dad and my best friend. How could I have forgotten that?

"Well, the beach is significant to you and your dad," John continued. "And the sun rises at the beach."

_That makes sense_! I thought, catching on and glancing over at my friend beside me. "Okay, now I get that. But the rocks? And the shovel?" Was I supposed to dig something up?

"The rocks could mean one of two things," he explained. "Either it can represent the sand-"

"Wait a second," Riku interrupted as he spoke for the first time. "Why didn't he just give her pictures of sand then?"

"Probably because it'd be too obvious," John said. "These clues were purposely vague and connected to Steph's memories so that in the best case scenario, she'd be able to figure it out while nobody else could." When Riku hummed in understanding, John continued explaining. "Now, either the rocks could stand for sand or it could stand for the rocks at the shore. Remember how whenever we went to the beach we sat by the rock and coral wall?"

"Yeah…yeah that's right!" I said, eyes widening in recognition. At the beach, there was a coral and rock wall that extended from the water up to the beach. We always sat right there, and my dad… "My dad always said to go there whenever we got into trouble," I realized aloud.

"You got it. I think he meant that for right now too. Maybe he knew that one day Isabella would try to get rid of him. He wanted you to go there for some reason."

"To dig something up?" I asked. "With a shovel?"

John shrugged. "Maybe. Or maybe he just meant to point you to the beach because we always dug up the sand with those toy shovels."

I looked over at John in awe, sure to keep myself from leaving my mouth agape. How did he figure this all out? It all fit together so perfectly! As soon as we got to the beach, we'd have to look around that area to see if there were any clues that would lead me to my dad. He probably wasn't going to make this easy since he didn't want anyone but me finding him. At least, that was what I figured since the clues were connected to me and my past. Why was he being so secretive? And who stole the photo albums out of my living room? Were the two things connected somehow? Maybe somebody else was searching for him…Maybe he was in danger.

"I sort of doubt that he'd have us dig up the beach," John continued upon hearing my silence. "I mean, that's too easy for somebody else to stumble upon. Unless he just put it there recently."

"We're here," Riku interrupted before I could respond. Sure enough, the train came to a stop at the station at the beach. It would be a pretty good walk until we were at the spot, but that was okay. There was something I still needed to do.

As we got up and left the train, I noticed that Riku was walking right beside me while John was on the other side. "Have you ever been to the beach before, Riku?" I asked him quietly, glancing over at him while not holding his hand like I should have.

"Once," he responded with a small nod. "Why?"

"I just…I was wondering if you could walk on ahead and give me a minute to talk to John," I requested quietly. He answered so many questions of mine already, but there was still another that I had to ask. I didn't know how he would respond to it, though. That scared me but I wouldn't refuse to ask it because of my fear. Ignorant was not something I could be right now.

Riku gave me a look, but he did walk forward without questioning me further. I hoped Riku didn't take it too personally; I just needed some privacy to ask John my next question. It wasn't a pleasant one in any way, shape, or form. In fact, it was one of the worst questions that could ever be asked. But I was about to voice it despite all that because I of all people needed to know the truth.

"John?" I asked softly.

"Hm?"

"I…I have another question."

"What is it?" my friend prodded gently while he gazed at me.

_Can I even say it…?_ "John…I don't even remember how my dad died," I blurted. John suddenly halted in his walking and I did the same, seeing his stunned and confused expression. "I know, it's terrible," I continued. "But my mom wouldn't tell me the details. All that she said was that he died. And then she wouldn't let me read the newspapers at all to figure out what was going on. Not that I would have understood anyway since I was only six, but…"

"…Steph…"

"And it then it seemed like she kept everyone quiet after that too. People wouldn't talk to me about my dad at all after he died. Soon after it happened, life was back to normal for everyone. It was like they didn't care, even if they were friends with him before. I never realized it till now…"

"Steph, are you…Are you okay?"

I blinked at John's tone, also seeing him step forward and set his hands on my shoulders. It was either meant to support me emotionally or physically, though I didn't see why the latter would be a problem. "I'm fine, why?" I asked timidly.

John shook his head. "…Nobody should have had to tell you about how he died," he said quietly. "…You were there."

My eyes widened as a memory suddenly flashed before my eyes.

*…*…*…*…*…*

_Six years old. Innocent of any wrong doing and innocent of the concept of death and danger. That was me in a nutshell. Death was a word that held no meaning to me. "Suffering" and "loneliness" weren't a part of my vocabulary. While my mother was never especially kind to me, I was always alright as long as I had my best friend by my side. My daddy. _

_My daddy was by my side on that fateful day, and so was John. He was as adorable as a baby as he was grown up. His blond hair was much shorter than it was now that he was eighteen, but his green eyes shone the same way as always. His eyes reflected the same innocence as mine did all the time._

_My eyes…They shone the same shade as the ocean when it reflected the sunlight during the day. My long eyelashes, which I batted whenever I wanted affection, only showed off my bright eyes. My hair that would eventually darken into a light brunette was more of a dirty blonde when I was just a child. Probably because of how often I was in the sun; that lightened the shade significantly until I was about ten. I spent less time outside after that day happened even if I didn't remember the details of it. The fear lingered inside my soul without me realizing it, dormant. _

_Laughing, I dug into the sand with my favorite blue shovel so that I could create a masterpiece of a castle for my daddy. John was there helping me too, waddling to the ocean to fill buckets of water so that the sand would stick together. My father was there watching us. He was quieter that day than usual, I remembered. But that could have been because it was only the three of us. His good friend—John's father, wasn't coming to the beach today for some reason. I thought he was sick. _

"_Here, pour the water here," I said to John, pointing one of my chubby fingers at the base of my castle. I had baby fat until I was about seven; that was when I grew out of it and received my slim figure. I was a stereotypically cute kid, but all the kids in Twilight Town were like that. Adorable and blessed with innocence. _

_Until __**it**__ happened. _

_John dumped the bucket of water all over the castle, but the bucket was too heavy for the six year old to hold onto. He dropped it and the bucket demolished the work of art we were creating. "Aw, John…" I moaned, trying to fix the castle as he took away the bucket. _

_After a second, he dropped the bucket again and nearly destroyed what survived of the castle. I was confused and looked over at him. "John, what…?" I didn't have to finish the question because my eyes landed on the same thing that he was staring at. The sand between us and the ocean was suddenly turning black, as if it was goo instead of sand. And out of the dark goo arose several large creatures with extremely large yellow eyes, claws, and antennae. _

_I didn't know it then, but they were Heartless. _

"_Monsters!" a person down the beach screamed upon seeing the creatures. And soon, everybody was screaming in terror. This was the first time that the beach had ever been attacked by Heartless. It was also the last. People started panicking, grabbing their most important possessions before sprinting in any direction that would take them away from the creatures who ran after people to try and steal their hearts. Everyone knew to run…_

_Everyone but me and John._

"_D-daddy?" I cried over the mayhem, looking over at him as the creatures got closer. Suddenly I saw him kneel down in front of me and John, his expression calmer than the other people's but still very concerned for my safety. He grabbed my hand and put it in John's before speaking. _

"_Stay together," he said. _

_I didn't understand what that was supposed to mean. "Daddy?" my six year old self said tearfully. What was going on? _

"_It'll be alright," he promised me and John then. Terry stayed kneeling down in front of me and gave me a kiss on the top of my short blonde head before he stood back up. "Go back home as soon as you can."_

"_Without you?" I asked._

"_Alone?" John inquired as he naively continued to hold my hand._

"_Yes," Terry said with a nod. "You two know the way, and if you need help, you can ask."_

"_Daddy…" _

"_Be brave, Steph." Dad glanced at me one more time before he turned around to face the monsters that stood between us and the ocean…and now our exit route. But that wouldn't be a problem for us in just a moment. My father flexed his hand and started summoning a magic that I had never seen before, but it was a magic that I would see again in eleven years. In a flash, a strange weapon appeared in his grasp. It was hardly sharp, but the Heartless all took a step away at the sight of the infamous weapon._

_The Keyblade. _

_I didn't even know that my father knew how to fight. The fact that he even could summon a weapon so naturally left me feeling so baffled that I couldn't ask him about it before he charged ahead and started swinging at the nearest Heartless. In a few skillfully executed attacks, the monster vanished in a puff of smoke and a heart flew upwards into the sky. _

"_Go!" my daddy cried._

_That was the only cue that John needed. He started running as fast as his little legs would carry him while dragging me along with him and gripping my hand tightly. While I ran with him, I couldn't sprint like he did because my attention was on the person who was still fighting the creatures to keep them from following us. "Dad!" I lost my grip on John's hand and tripped over a towel that was left on the beach, falling down on my face before I could catch myself. _

_John ran back to me while he wasn't far off, my young friend using all his strength to try and pull me back onto my feet. But he paused after a moment, a frightened cry leaving his lips as he saw a monster leap at the two of us. We both squeezed our eyes shut and prepared for the hurt that never arrived._

_My father jumped in the way and destroyed the Heartless with one mighty swing, protecting his daughter and the boy who was my best friend. "Go!" he said again as more Heartless rose out of the sand._

_This time, I knew that I had to listen to him and not be concerned about his safety. "Daddy, I love you!" I said shakily, rising to my feet with John's help. The two of us turned around and fled the same direction that everyone else did while my father lingered on the beach and fought off the Heartless until he died._

_That was the last time that I ever saw my Dad, my best friend._

*…*…*…*…*…*

Tears were streaming down my face as the vivid memory returned to my mind, familiar to me now instead of being something I forgot. I remembered perfectly now. After John and I fled the beach, we managed to go on the train (we were able to slip on without showing our passes because of the chaos the Heartless created) and then we went to my mother. Isabella was already standing in the doorway and was tearful as she picked me up and hugged me. I cried into her shoulder out of fright, not out of grief.

She told John to go home to his family and then she took me inside and told me that my father wasn't coming back home.

"I-I can't believe that you didn't remember," John said quietly. I looked over at my friend through moist eyes and saw compassion in his green orbs, his blonde hair shaggy but neat as he gazed at me. "I mean, we were both there, and I…I never forgot that day."

"You saved my life," I whispered in awe. He dragged me out of there and pulled me away from the Heartless so that they couldn't hurt me…

"I started insisting that I learn to fight after that day," he said softly. "I told my parents it was because I liked the sport of it. They didn't know what happened at the beach…Nobody knew that your dad actually had a weapon and protected us. We're the only two who know about his last stand."

"But apparently it wasn't his last stand," I realized as I continued whispering and shedding tears. "He survived that day…"

"And so did we. Even if we shouldn't have. I just still don't understand why you don't remember."

Suddenly, I did realize why I didn't remember. "Isabella. She messed with my head." I lifted a hand to my head at that thought, fingers intertwining with my soft brunette locks as I looked to the ground. My past wasn't completely blocked out in my mind because of my own desires. It was true that I wanted to forget, but it was because of her that I actually did. She buried them so that I wouldn't remember the man who loved me, but it didn't work. My daddy's love conquered her spells so that I could remember him if somebody mentioned something. It made perfect sense.

John didn't know how to respond to the mention of the sorceress, but fortunately for him, he didn't have to. Riku finally approached us, walking up from behind me. After a moment, he appeared by my side and gazed at my face. He saw the tears and immediately became concerned. "Hey. What's going on here?"

Neither of us responded. And John didn't take his hands off my shoulders either.

"Steph?" Riku asked.

"Give her a minute," John said for my sake.

But Riku wouldn't accept somebody speaking on my behalf, even if he did it several times before. "Why?" he asked. "What's wrong?"

"She'll tell you when she's ready."

Riku fell silent, though he did half-glare at John because he thought that he was responsible for making me cry like this. It wasn't anything like that though; he reminded me of what happened but it wasn't his fault. It wasn't his fault that my dad "died" that day to protect me and John. Was it my fault that he was gone though? What if I said I didn't want to go to the beach that day? What if I said I wanted ice cream instead? What if John hadn't been with us?

What if…What if I never got answers to all these questions I had about my past?

I lifted a hand and wiped at my tears after a moment, glad that the station was relatively empty so people wouldn't see my shedding so many tears. "I'm sorry," I whispered weakly to both of these boys.

"Don't apologize," John insisted gently. "You just remembered something huge and life changing."

Riku said nothing, because he didn't know anything. He had no clue what we were talking about after all. That was why I finally decided to break it to him. "I told you before how my memories from the past aren't easy to recall, right?" I whispered. Riku hummed to say "yes", so I continued. "John just managed to remind me of how my dad died. And that I was there to see it." When he was silent, I continued speaking. "We think Isabella suppressed my memories of that day and of him in general so I wouldn't remember him. She got inside my head…" That was the worst betrayal so far. She messed with my memories…

"I…I'm so sorry," Riku said quietly upon hearing what happened. John's hands left my shoulders as Riku's arm surround them instead, my boyfriend pulling me close to him in a side hug. My head found his shoulder as I nodded faintly to his sympathy, my tears slowing down as I tried to compose myself. I needed to, before anybody else saw me here and asked me what was wrong.

What was wrong was that I lost my father when I was only six years old. It was wrong that my memories of him were suppressed. It was wrong that I saw him go and then didn't remember it because of Isabella.

"I hate her," I whispered.

"What?" Riku asked. Either he was unable to hear me or he didn't understand what I said. I repeated it without clarification anyway.

"I hate her." I locked my jaw so I didn't scream it to the world. I never could say that I hated anybody before. It was such a strong word, like love. I used to love my mother Isabella despite how she didn't show me any love. Even after she betrayed me, I couldn't say that I hated her. But this was the absolute last straw. She took this too deep by messing with my head and keeping me from knowing my father through my memories.

For the first time ever, I hated somebody.

And because of that hatred, my innocence started to fade. Just as Riku feared it would.


	10. Chapter 10: Daddy Dearest

**Hey there people. Sorry I'm just posting this now; I was hoping to get it posted before 2012, but alas, I had several complications. But might I just say that this chapter is EPIC? It'll be worth the few extra days of waiting. And it is most certainly worthy of your reviews (which I love, thank you very much Naivette, SSBTMM, Crystal4458, and Ravlia). **

**Oh, and on another note, I've recently posted some oneshots. So if you're bored or you like my writing style, check those out. **

**But enough procrastinating. Here's the new chapter. Hope you enjoy it!**

Chapter Ten: Daddy Dearest

We were all quiet as we made our way to the beach. About halfway through the walk, Riku started sensing something snapped within me and started gently prodding me to figure out what was wrong. But I wouldn't tell him about the fury I felt towards my mother. I wouldn't even admit it to myself right now. Instead, I locked my jaw and repeatedly told Riku that I was going to find my dad today. And nothing was going to get in my way.

That was enough to get him quiet for a while. John was quiet too; he was more sensitive than Riku was to the situation. But then again, he knew more than Riku did. He knew all along that we were there that day and witnessed my father's "death". And he lived with it for years. Now I would have to do the same.

No wonder people didn't try talking to me about my Dad. They thought I was traumatized by that day! They knew I was with him right before he disappeared off the face of the world. But in reality, I didn't even know that. Isabella took that knowledge away from me, and as soon as he was gone, she got inside my head. She took away **everything **that was ever precious to me. Everything! She ruined me!

I hated her.

"We're here," John said. Looking ahead instead of at my feet in the sand, I saw the seawall that ran into the ocean and on the same. It was sort of like a bridge that everyone could walk on, if they were very careful and didn't slip up. It was just naturally there and a good cutoff point for the beach; the other side was just empty. Well, that was what I assumed anyway. It wasn't like I ever actually went over to look. Why would it matter?

"Okay," I responded, stopping and looking around the area. This was where we always sat, I thought, glancing down at the ground. This was where my Dad saved John and I from the Heartless. And this was where he "died". _Dad, where are you?_

"I'm not seeing any obvious places to dig up," Riku stated as he stood beside me.

"Me neither," John said. "I'm pretty sure we're not supposed to dig anything up. If the next clue was hidden under the sand, somebody could easily stumble upon it."

"Then what do you suggest?" I asked. There was nothing here but that wall. Wait, the wall. I looked over at it and approached it, feeling around its holes in case something was slipped in the wall.

"Steph? What're you doing?" Riku inquired as he and John both approached me in confusion.

"The only thing here other than sand is the wall. So what if he hid something around the rocks?"

"Or how about behind?"

"Probably not," John disagreed, going against Riku's question. "Those rocks can't be separated."

"Maybe not by you," Riku said as he flexed his muscles. Glancing over my shoulder, I saw him lift his arm and flex his biceps innocently, though the smirk he then shot my direction was one with purpose.

"Show off," I laughed, smiling despite the circumstances. But then I realized that was the point of him flexing his muscles; it was to make me smile again, since I was still on the verge of tears due to the memory I recalled earlier. Just thinking about it made me want to shudder, but I wouldn't do it right now. I had to focus on finding my Dad, though I was a little scared of what I would find. He was okay, right? We weren't walking into a trap? If we were, John should have left so that he wouldn't get hurt. I didn't want him in pain.

Riku stopped flexing his muscles as he stepped up next to me. Suddenly, he wasn't the goofball that he was a minute ago. "Something smells fishy," he said lowly as I gazed at him in question.

"Well, we are by an ocean," I said lightly. "So of course it's going to smell like fish."

"Ha-ha," Riku said sarcastically. "But seriously…" He looked over his shoulder and grunted at what he saw.

"What?" I asked, eyes widening a little as his narrowed. Turning around, I saw the same thing that he saw. "Heartless?" They hadn't appeared on this beach for years!

My boyfriend summoned his Keyblade and got into his stance, motioning with his free hand for me to stay close. "You know you're onto something whenever the Heartless appear."

"Really, well if that's the case…" I said lowly, summoning my sword instead of my bow and arrow. "Then let's finish this quick and move on!" I charged forward before he could stop me, though he did holler my name in protest. It didn't matter. I needed my Dad. I needed to see him after recalling all that happened that day.

Instead of protesting like Riku did, John wordlessly summoned his weapon and joined in the battle against the shadows. They were always easy to be taken down, even in large numbers. It was their counterparts, the Neoshadows, that caused the most problems for Twilight Town residents.

And today, they fell just as easily. Riku stabbed the last of his enemies as John and I watched, the two of us already done with our fights. After looking around and making sure that no more Heartless were around, his aqua eyes found me and showed a combination of disbelief and retribution. _Don't just rush into battle like that, _his scolding eyes seemed to say.

My eyes gave an apathetic response, as did my slight shrug. _Sorry. _But I wasn't really sorry. Whether he realized that or not, he decided to let the topic go.

Riku walked up to the wall and examined it in the same place that he did before, glaring at the wall for some reason as I stood right next to the spot. "Step aside for a sec," he said. "I think I see something."

"What type of something?" I asked as I obeyed his request, stepping back and to the side so that I could see what he was going to do. John was curious as well, obviously.

"A door type of something," Riku said, shifting his body so that he could get his hands underneath some of the rocks. He grunted roughly as he started yanking, taking a step back as he tried to pull open the "door". Was that even what it was, though? I saw the rocks start cracking as Riku pulled on them, which was surprising to me. The seawall should have been more secure than that.

But it wasn't. And it wasn't just a seawall. A rectangular slab became more evident as Riku took another step back, using those toned muscles of his to pull it out of its place. It opened just like a door, though it required much more effort than a normal door would to open. I gasped as he opened it completely, seeing that there wasn't just a note or something concealed behind it.

There was a passage way that was only lit from the sunlight.

I inhaled a breath, remembering to breathe after a moment or two. We were here for a reason. Would this path lead me to my dad? There was only one way to find out. I started forward to enter the dark corridor.

"That's…a little creepy," John said from behind me, showing some hesitation as he lingered back. "How're we supposed to see in there?"

"Maybe there's a torch or something," I responded, stopping a foot or two into the area. Sure enough, on the wall, there was a torch that we could use. I took it out of its place and extended my hand by it, casting a small fire spell that lit the top of it on fire. That would work nicely to let us see the area. Turning around, I saw that Riku wasn't nervous about entering. John was, though. "C'mon," I said, continuing further into the area.

Riku's footsteps were heard behind mine, and after a moment, so were John's. "John, shut the door behind you," Riku said.

"W-what? Why?"

"We don't want anyone following us."

That idea spooked John, who never would have considered such a thing. "You think someone will?"

"I don't know."

"That's comforting," John muttered. Riku was silent, so John sighed and spoke again. "You sure I should be in the rear, then?"

"Shut the door and you won't have anything to worry about," Riku pointed out with some impatience.

"Guys, c'mon," I said, standing still as they squabbled. "I want to go deeper in."

"You sure this is a good idea?" John asked nervously.

Smiling faintly, I shook my head. "Nope," I responded, starting forward anyway. As long as I had the torch, those two would have to follow me wherever I went. Clearly John also had that mentality. He quickly shut the door and the whole area got darker as my torch was the only source of light. I felt a little bad for John; he was courageous, but he was also just a normal eighteen year old kid who was a little freaked out by this. I wasn't so freaked out because of how unpredictable my life was, so I took it in stride. That was the only choice that I had.

As we walked, our footsteps echoed throughout the cave-like path that we were in. It was tall enough that even Riku didn't have to duck, though, which was strange. Strange…and convenient, considering that my dad was also pretty tall. I couldn't shake the feeling that each step we took was getting us closer and closer to my father. My breath was caught in my throat because of that very thought, even if the dampness of this place wasn't helping.

The path declined and turned into a set of stairs. For this being a random cave that never was found before, it was awfully well taken care of. "We have to be close," I whispered, hearing my voice echo faintly throughout the narrow cave. _Dad…_

"Wait, here's a light switch," Riku said. His voice was slightly confused as we reached the bottom of the steps, but he reached over and flipped the switch anyway.

The lights turned on and revealed so much more than the torch had. "Holy cow, Batman," I said, shaking my head as I looked around the area. _This is like a Batcave or something._ There was furniture, a kitchen area, computer… It had everything that a person needed to live around here. Sure, the walls were still cave walls and the floor was pretty rough, but these were definitely livable conditions.

"I only see one entrance, and that's the one we just came in through," Riku said as he further observed the area. "So if somebody was here, they'd be in this room."

"There's no bed," John pointed out, waltzing further into the room.

"The couch looks like it could be a futon. Besides, it's not like he was living in the lap of luxury down here."

"How did he even do it? I mean, even just getting food down here would be hard. How'd he get in and out without anyone noticing?"

"You have me there, John," Riku said.

As the two of them spoke to each other, I started walking around the room that was a cross between a square and a circle. The wires were all over the walls instead of inwardly being wired like a normal house. Did…my dad do this himself? He did live here, didn't he? I walked right along the walls of the room and ran my fingertips over it lightly as I examined every aspect of the room. But then my fingers got caught in something. I stopped walking and kept my fingers where they were and peeked at that crack, seeing that it wasn't just a crack. It was another secret door.

I glanced over my shoulder and saw that both Riku and John were distracted in the kitchen area with their backs to me. For some reason, I didn't feel like telling them what I found. I wanted to see it for myself. So instead of speaking up, I became even more silent. I dug my fingers underneath the slab and silently eased it open to reveal another room.

I immediately noticed that the lights were already on.

After glancing at Riku and John one more time before I slipped in past that door into that room. The door shut almost completely behind me as I stepped into the narrow pass. There was nothing there, only walls to my sides and a ceiling above my head. There must have been something more further ahead. That was where I started walking to.

It didn't take long for me to reach that area though. One room with a light bulb on the ceiling on the table on the ground. A table covered with pictures...of me.

My heart started pounding very quickly as I silently approached the table. Many of the pictures were of me as a child. They were the photos from the albums that I found before. And speaking of those, they were sitting in the table to my right. This was where they went after they were taken out of my house. Whoever resided in this cave was watching me. And I could tell for more reasons than just the books being here. There were other photographs that were of me and I was past the age of six when they were taken. There was one of me when I was ten and going to my first voice recital. One when I was twelve and leaving school. And one when I was seventeen and at work. That was the most recent one.

There was one thing that I noticed though, and that was that all the photographs were candids. "This is a little…" A little what? It was actually scary. Somebody was watching me my whole life and I didn't know it. How oblivious was I?

I heard a small noise and nearly jumped out of my skin. Without thinking, I spun around towards the way I came in. And then my heart nearly stopped.

There was a man leaning against the wall. He had been there the whole time but I hadn't seen him because I hadn't turned around. But there he was in blue jeans and a dark T-shirt that showed off that he was still very in shape. But his bright blue eyes and spiky brown hair was what gave away his identity.

"…Dad," I said hoarsely_. Dad. Father. __**Daddy**_**.** For the first time in over ten years, I was standing with him. He was alive and healthy and safe. My best friend was back with me. I choked back a sob and ran the small space between us. My arms weaved around him and squeezed him tightly as my head found his taller shoulder. Much to my joy, I felt his arms go around me as well. There was nothing like my strong father's extremely gentle but secure embrace.

"Hey sweetheart," he said lowly in my ear. Suddenly tears appeared in my eyes as I held him more tightly. I squeezed my eyes shut tightly as my heart pounded in my chest. What I was feeling was…indescribable. It was like he was raised from the dead. He was alive and so was I, and now we could finally be together again. No matter how confused I was about all of this, I was so thrilled that he was with me.

"You're really alive," I whispered through the tears that were now flowing.

"I am," Terry confirmed softly in my ear. "I knew you'd be smart enough to find me."

I shook my head faintly to counter that. "I wasn't," I admitted with some shame. "I couldn't figure it out. John did."

"John solved it?" he asked, sounding stunned. After I nodded to confirm it, he hummed. "I always knew he'd be good for you."

"What?" I inquired in confusion. What was that supposed to mean? John and I weren't even friends again until a day ago, or so I thought.

"Never mind. I'm just glad you're here…" My father kept one arm around me as he lifted his other hand to the back of my head. His fingers weaved between my brunette locks as he held me closely, unwilling to let me go. I wasn't willing to let him go either though; Twelve years apart were far too many. Twelve years I lived without my father…my best friend.

"I have so many questions," I whispered, though I didn't bother speaking any of my inquiries aloud. As long as I was with him, in his arms for a little longer, I could ignore the confusion. All that mattered right now was that he was alive and he was with me. While I wished I could say that was enough to conquer the questions forever, it wasn't. I needed to know what really happened that day, why he stayed away from me for twelve years, and why Isabella told me to ask him about my curse. _The curse, I had almost forgotten about that,_ I thought to myself. I was good at forgetting, even without Isabella's help. The mere thought of her messing with my memories made the bitterness rise up in my heart again, so I clung to my dad more. Now wasn't the time to think about that.

"Steph!"

I grunted at the muffled voice and turned my head, glancing back the direction I came from. Riku and John finally discovered that I wasn't in the same room as them anymore.

"Steph, where are you?"

As I opened my mouth to yell a response to Riku, my father beat me to it. "You brought people down here with you?" he asked lowly. His tone was tense for some reason that I couldn't understand.

"I did," I said hesitantly. "Why, is that a problem?"

A sudden banging at the entrance to this area made me jump. Terry's arms stayed around me as Riku and John's murmured voices grew louder. They forced the entrance open even if they didn't need to; it wasn't like it was hard to open in the first place.

"Steph, you back here?" Riku hollered. He quickly appeared in my sight before I could answer, with John right on his tail. While John looked stunned and relieved to see my dad, Riku didn't share the same expression. In fact, he looked more worried now than he had before. He probably just found it odd I was hugging a total stranger. John knew who my dad was, but clearly Riku didn't.

"Riku, this is my dad," I said softly to him. The air was still extremely tense for some reason, though I wasn't aware that the tension wasn't just from my boyfriend. My father's embrace around me stayed tight even after I started releasing him to turn and look at Riku and John. "Terry."

"Do I know you?" Riku inquired quite suddenly, staring at my dad with intense aqua eyes. How would they know each other?

"Doubt it. I've never seen you before in my life," Dad responded bluntly.

"Hmph."

Slowly, regretfully, I released my father completely. Something was seriously wrong here; I could see that now. Riku was as stiff as a board and John was glancing between everyone in the room in absolute confusion. I turned around to face John and Riku completely as my father's strong hands landed on my shoulders and stayed there. "What's wrong?" I asked, mostly speaking to Riku.

"Can you come stand over by me, Steph?"

That only made my confusion increase. "Why?"

"I can't explain right now. Can you just come over?"

_You're really tearing me apart from Dad after I just found him? _I thought silently, glancing from Riku to Terry. I wanted to trust Riku and go over to him without hesitating, but I also wanted to be here with my father. Twelve years was far too long to be apart from my best friend.

"You don't have to do as he says, you know," Dad said as he squeezed my shoulders. His bright blue eyes were locked on mine as I gazed right back at him in silence. "Who is he to tell you where to go?"

"I'm her overprotective bodyguard, and boyfriend. Riku," the silver haired young man responded in close to a growl. What was up with that tone?

"And I'm her overprotective father," Terry responded lowly. "So you won't be protecting her any more. I will."

"It's you she needs protecting from!" Riku snarled. To my shock, he summoned his Keyblade and pointed it at the man standing behind me. I had seen him angry before, but this wasn't anger. This was fury.

"Riku!" I choked out scoldingly. But nobody was listening to me.

"Funny, I was thinking it was the other way around," Terry responded as he took a hand off my shoulder.

"Dad!"

"I have a lot of questions to ask you," Riku said lowly. "Let go of Steph."

"If you think I'd harm my own daughter, you're insane," he hissed. "You, on the other hand, are worth being worried about you. You wield a Keyblade."

"Yes I do. And I use it to protect the people I care about. Like Steph. I can guarantee I've done a much better job protecting her lately than you have, considering you left her."

"I didn't leave her! I've been watching out for her for her whole life. You can't say that, can you?"

"No, and I don't want to. Because I did something more than watch out for her; I stepped in. I did something to protect her whenever she was threatened." On a roll, Riku continued. "You know, despite the magnitude of all the threats towards her in the past, I think you're the worst."

"You're the threat here, not me. The Keyblade attracts nothing but trouble and so do you. I can sense that."

"Dad, Riku, stop it!" I cried out in interruption. Again, they didn't listen to me. Was I invisible or were they just acting like it?

"Yeah, well, I can sense the Darkness in you," Riku spat lowly. I gasped and looked at him with wide eyes as I finally understood why he was so upset. He had that sense of "smell" that nobody else had; he could sense the Darkness within a person's heart and how great it was. And if my dad "reeked" of that Darkness, then he had a right to be concerned. Sort of. I knew Dad would never, ever hurt me. "Steph, come over here. Now."

My father's hand remained on my shoulder as I looked at Riku, mentally unsure of everything now. "What are you going to do?" I asked shakily. Would he…hurt my dad?

"I'll do what I have to do to keep you safe."

"She** is **safe as long as she's with me."

Riku ignored Terry's remark and took a small step forward, offering me his hand as his Keyblade dangled by his side. "Steph, please…"

I swallowed back some tears and glanced back at my dad in time to see him looking down at me. "Just…tell me the truth," I said, slowly slipping out from underneath his hand and taking a small step away. Obviously it wasn't what Riku wanted, but I wasn't about to give up on my dad! Whether his heart was dark or not, he was still my father. I loved him no matter what, whether he was at his best or at his worst. I knew that he loved me the same.

"I can't tell you here, sweetheart," Dad responded quietly. He briefly glanced at Riku before he looked down at me, his reason for keeping silent obvious. He didn't want Riku hearing whatever he had to say.

"Steph, come here," Riku said.

"You do what_ you_ want to do. Don't let him order you around."

"I know what's best for you right now. Get away from your dad."

"It's not all it seems to be."

"The Darkness isn't all that hard to figure out."

"Oh yes it is."

"You're speaking from experience, huh?" Riku spat. "You're not denying that your heart is the darkest black possible?"

"I'm not having this conversation with you. This something need I discuss with my daughter alone."

"Yeah, well, that's not going to happen," my boyfriend said. He took a step forward and grabbed a hold of my arm, yanking me back closer to where John was still standing in stunned silence. I stumbled over my feet and was fortunately balanced when that same boy set a hand on my back to keep me from falling. Riku was a little too busy to do that. He stood directly in front of me in his stance, Keyblade held tightly as he glared at my dad. "I'm not leaving her alone with somebody like you."

"Riku, this is her father!" John finally said, breaking his long silence as he stood up for me. "Shouldn't this be her decision?"

Riku turned around and glared at John, though that glare was probably just left over anger directed at my dad. "You really want her alone with somebody you know nothing about? Somebody who tricked you into believing they were dead for twelve years? His heart is nearly pure black. You want her emotions clouding her judgment so she goes with him and gets into trouble?"

"…No," he finally said. "No, I don't." I looked over my shoulder at John as his hand remained on my back. Why did he have to take Riku's side on this? I didn't care if my emotions were in the way! I couldn't let my dad believe that I hated him. That would never, ever happen. Just like he would always be on my side, I would always be on his. Was it naïve to think that way? Absolutely. Even I realized that. But some things were naturally simple. The love between a father and his daughter never died. I'd always be "daddy's little girl".

"That's what I thought," Riku said as he brought me back to the current moment. He finally looked down at my eyes directly with some newfound softness. "You'll understand someday," he said softly to me.

_Right…_I thought. M_aybe._

"Now," Riku said, spinning around to face the other direction. "Time for some answer-"

There was nobody standing there to answer the questions that he had. I hadn't noticed it since Riku's body was blocking the way before, but my father took his leave. "Dad?" I whispered into the silent air. But he wasn't there any longer, clearly. He left. Right after we were reunited, he left. Because of that, I was forced to really dwell on what happened. If he was filled with Darkness, then we had some serious problems.

_Dad…Are you still my best friend, or are you my enemy? _


	11. Chapter 11: Trust

**Author's note: Wow, can't believe it's been two weeks since the last update already! My update days are sneaking up on me now that I'm back to updating every two weeks. xD Still, everything will continue on schedule as long as nothing drastic happens in my life. **

**Thanks to SSBTMM, Luthien Eriol, Naivette, mezwantzygs, Ravlia, and Crystal4458 for the reviews last chapter! You know how I love the reviews, and I know how you love the new chapters. ;3 With that being said, I won't keep you away from the chapter any longer. Here it is, enjoy! **

Chapter Eleven: Trust

Two days went by after the encounter with my dad. He hadn't resurfaced since then. That was devastating on so many levels. I knew he cared because of what happened the other day, but avoiding me wasn't a good thing. Riku seemed pleased though. Ever since the encounter he had been trying to get me to not start searching for him again. He believed that the Darkness within Dad made him absolutely evil and that he was a danger to me now. As if. My dad was my dad, no matter what side he was on. But I still needed the truth. If I had to, I'd discover it on my own. I just had to find a way to shake of Riku. It wasn't like I needed to worry about John getting in my way.

John didn't want me to get hurt either, but he at least trusted me. I wished that he was the one sticking around and not Riku, but unfortunately, he had to leave me alone. His family was on vacation now. So there was no voice of reason to get through to Riku other than mine. And lately I felt like I had no voice at all. I could hear myself, but Riku wasn't listening to a word I said. He had a right to be paranoid about the Darkness but this was starting to get ridiculous. What happened to the understanding we had a few days ago? I was seeing his point of view and realizing there was danger, but he wasn't seeing my view at all. So what if there was danger? This was my best friend. No way was I going to give up on the one parent who made me feel loved growing up. If I did that, I'd have a heart full of Darkness myself.

"Steph."

I shifted my gaze to Riku standing by the ramp of the gummi ship in silence, knowing that he was ready to go. Despite how overbearing he was, I was able to convince him to go to my mother alone and tell her we still needed a few days time. Riku believed I was going to cope with the loss of my father on my own as we tried to find another cure to break the curse that was holding back my power. In reality, I just needed to get him away from me. I'd find my father on my own.

"Don't do anything stupid while I'm gone," Riku said.

_How kind,_ I thought sarcastically. But instead of starting yet another argument, I silently nodded to him. If he wasn't hearing my voice, maybe he'd hear my silence. I didn't appreciate how he was treating me and trying to take control of the situation. And he was trying to control me as well. Neither of the two were meant to be ruled by him. Things would unfold however they were meant to and I would travel my own path and somehow wind up where I was supposed to end up. He was scared but I wasn't. It would be okay in the end as long as I was by my dad's side. Hopefully Riku would be by my side as well. And I didn't mean this crazy, uptight, controlling Riku. I meant my Riku.

"I'll speak to your mom and buy us a few more days time," he continued. "We'll search this world for a day to find a cure and if we don't, we'll go to Radiant Garden. If all else fails, we'll have to tell your mom the truth."

"Riku, I know," I said quietly. We already went over this.

He nodded even if he didn't seem to register what I had to say. "I'll be back before the end of the day. We'll meet again in front of the house. Okay?"

I nodded in silence.

"Okay. Stick to finding a way to break the curse. Don't go looking for trouble."

Meaning, don't go look for Dad. Again I nodded as Riku stared at me. He didn't call me out on my lack of enthusiastic response. Instead, he turned around and entered the gummi ship alone. I took a few steps back as the ramp closed and folded back inside the ship, the door shutting so that nobody could get inside of it any longer. That was a nice farewell Riku gave me. Not. How cold could he get? This wasn't the young man I was falling for before. This was a stranger.

This "stranger" did have the same skills with gummi ships though. It only took a few moments for Riku to turn on the ship and fly off into a warp hole in the sky. After he was gone, I sighed. Whether it was a sigh of relief or sadness I didn't know. I'd worry about Riku later; right now I needed to find my dad. If my suspicions were correct, he was most likely keeping an eye on me and waiting for Riku to leave me alone. But of course, he couldn't get extremely close since Riku would know if he was near. No, I'd need to make it clear that I was alone.

I walked away from the train station and into town. My hands were curled in loose fists beside me as I tried to think. In our last encounter, my dad made it clear he couldn't answer any of me questions as long as other people were around. So I'd need to be in a secluded area so that I could speak candidly with him. Would he even risk coming out in the secluded townhouse area of town? That was the only place I could think to go, so that would have to do for now. I headed in that direction.

Thankfully, I didn't run into anybody on the way there. None of my former friends ever hanged out in this part of town anyway; they were always either at the beach or the mall.

The empty townhouses lined the streets as I walked down the sidewalk. There wasn't a single car here, not that many people drove cars in Twilight Town. Most people took the bus. Regardless, nobody lived in this area since the houses weren't done. They were all started on and looked terrific from the outside, but eventually they ran out of money and couldn't install plumbing and electricity for the homes. So they were vacant for now.

"I'm alone," I said softly into the air, stopping and looking around. There was no sign that my dad was in the area. If he was here, maybe he wasn't convinced I was truly alone. Maybe he thought Riku convinced me to trap him or something. The thought of betraying my father made me sick.

"Riku is gone for the day, we only have so much time before he comes back," I continued, speaking as if somebody was listening to me. "John's gone too. He's on vacation."

Silence.

"Dad, please…" I'd beg if I had to. I just needed to see him right now. Needed to know what happened to him that made him give into the Darkness. Needed to know why my best friend hadn't spoken to me the past twelve years.

I heard a leave crack behind me and I spun around to see who had caused the noise. But there was nobody there. There was, however, somebody standing right behind me. Their hand went over my mouth and I let out a small yelp as I struggled against the strong hold.

"Shh."

I glanced down at the hand and saw a small glimmer of light, the sun reflecting off the ring that I immediately recognized. My father's wedding ring.

Exhaling a breath of relief into his hand, I stopped struggling against him. Thank goodness it was him and not somebody who would hurt me. When it became clear that I wasn't going to scream, he slowly took his hand away from my mouth. "Sorry,"Terry said as he took a small step away to give me space. "I thought if I startled you, you'd scream and call attention to us."

"I almost did, but it was because of your hand," I retorted a little shakily. Despite my frazzled nerves, I was thrilled to see him here. Apparently he was watching out for me like I believed that he was.

"Sorry," he said again.

I shook my head. "Don't worry about it." I spun around completely and hugged him without caring about how random it was. He was my father and I would embrace him however long I wanted to. Or however long I was allowed to.

Dad hugged me back for a few moments and accepted that this was what I needed, but he wasn't satisfied just by my presence. "Come with me," he said quietly.

I withdrew from the hug and looked up at him in surprise. "Where?"

"Somewhere more private."

_This isn't private enough?_ I wanted to ask as I looked around the empty area. But maybe it wasn't empty; maybe there was somebody hiding in one of the houses, keeping track of me or my dad. I'd have to trust him and do as he said until we could really speak. "Lead the way," I said quietly, looking back up at his bright blue eyes. I'd follow him wherever he went. He looked relieved at my faith and silently motioned for me to come with him as he walked away from the houses.

I had no idea where we were going, only that we were heading in closer to the town. Was that really so smart? He didn't want anyone knowing that he was here. That was pretty obvious, even to me. We didn't go into town, though. He stopped me underneath a bridge as he observed the area around us. If somebody was following us, they were doing a terrific job of it. I couldn't see anyone.

"Do you trust me?"

"What?" I asked in confusion, looking back at Dad. He was staring at me intently, deathly serious as he lifted a hand to my shoulder.

"Do you trust me?" he asked again.

Slowly, I started nodding. "Yes," I said quietly. "I do." I trusted him despite the mysteries surrounding him.

He glanced around the area one more time before he opened his free hand and summoned a type of magic. I had seen it before on a few occasions. The circular blue and purple blob appeared on the wall a few feet away from us, swirling its colors and seeping with Darkness.

It was a Dark Portal.

Hesitantly, I looked back at my Dad. "Go on through," he said quietly. "I'll be right behind you."

_This really, really seems like a trap,_ I thought as my father removed his hand from my shoulder. I glanced from the portal to his bright blue eyes, seeing him silently encouraging me to go through. The look his eyes was so gentle, so sincere…He couldn't do this to hurt me. This wasn't a trap.

I looked back to the portal and silently nodded to him before I walked towards it. My hand was open by my side in case I had to summon my weapon once I was through. I couldn't help but be just a little cautious, since Riku would kill me if I didn't listen to all his concerns about my dad. But they were only concerns, not absolute truths. My dad couldn't be completely evil.

I walked through the portal and ended up on the other side of it in a new area. It was completely devoid of people and of Heartless. It was lit up very well though. It was one of the tunnels in the underground tunnel system in Twilight Town.

_What a relief._ I took a few steps away from the icky portal and leaned my back against the wall in silence. My dad said that he would be right behind me, so I would trust him to be true to his word. I sank down to the ground and sat down with my knees bent, feet planted on the ground in silence. Thank goodness I even found him. A part of me was worried that he disappeared forever, but he hadn't given up on me because of Riku. He just had to avoid him now for whatever reason. Honestly, it was okay. I trusted my father completely.

He walked through the portal about sixty seconds later and allowed it to close behind him. His expression said more than words could. _Thank you for trusting me._

"Dad," I said softly. "…Can you tell me what's going on now? Please?" I couldn't be kept in the dark any longer.

Terry nodded and glanced around the area before he walked over to one of the walls and leaned against it. He had a clear view of the only entrance to this one room that was separate from the rest of the tunnels. He was paranoid, but it was okay. He probably had reason to be. "That day at the beach twelve years ago…" he started, shaking his head faintly at the mention of it. "I had a feeling that Isabella was going to try to dispose of me that day." When I was silent, he continued. "I didn't think that it would happen at the beach. If I did, things may have been different. I probably would have invited somebody else along to take you and John away from the scene."

"Isabella summoned those Heartless?" I asked weakly, sad and angry at the person I once considered to be my mom. How could she…?

"She did. And that was actually the best thing that could have happened. Since the attack happened right by the seawall, I fought for a while and then retreated in there. It was easy to convince everyone I was dead, since the Heartless leave no trace of their victims."

"Why couldn't you go straight for Isabella? Why did you…?" _Why did you let me endure twelve years of mental and emotional agony with her?_

Terry sighed sadly, shaking his head as he shifted his gaze to the ground. "I feared that Isabella would threaten you or your mother. About a week before my disappearance, she had a conversation with me. She said that she realized what a "treacherous swine" I was and promised I'd pay the price for my rouse. The witch...She said that Olaf, Gregory, or Tristan could kill your mom at any point. So if I tried anything, she'd send the order to kill her."

"Witch" is the right title for her, I thought as I glared down at the ground. This was just another offense to add to the long list I was building up mentally. The more I heard, the more I hated her. This was the first time I actually experienced such rage towards a person. I didn't like it at all.

"Apparently she didn't trust me not to act anyway," Dad continued. "It would have been convenient for her to keep up the rouse of us being a happily married couple and basically forcing me to be a slave on the threat of your mom's life. But instead, she tried to kill me. I let her believe she succeeded because I didn't know what else to do. She probably would have taken drastic action if she found out I was alive to threaten her plan to raise you and gain immense power through you."

Power. He was referring to the powers that I was supposed to receive on my eighteenth birthday. Those same powers would not only help me have wisdom to guide a kingdom, but it would also set my destiny. My path would either be Light or Darkness based on that, but the powers never came. "I never received those powers."

My dad didn't seem too surprised. "I was afraid of that," he said, glancing at the door before he looked to me. "As soon as Isabella was defeated and Olaf fell, I was afraid she'd jinx you so you didn't receive your powers."

"But she says she didn't do anything."

"Really? I'm surprised she wouldn't own up to it. I thought that would be something she'd be proud of."

I shook my head. "…No. She insisted that she didn't do anything. And…she implied that you were somehow responsible for this. Or at least you knew what happened," I said quickly, seeing my dad's expression.

"Why would I know anything?"

"I don't know," I admitted. "But Riku's sure you know something. That's partially why he dislikes you so much."

Terry grunted and pushed himself off the wall as he started to pace. "That's another thing," he said in irritation, lifting a hand and running it through his brunet spikes. "Who is this Riku guy?"

"He's my boyfriend."

"Boyfriend?"

"He's also the person who ended up saving me from Isabella and Olaf when the time came around," I added, seeing my dad's glare. He seriously disliked that I was in a relationship with somebody so…obnoxious. That was the side of him that he saw two days ago. "Now he's my bodyguard in Cadia."

"Has Andrea lost her mind?" he hissed.

"W-what?" What was that supposed to mean?

"Keyblade wielders shouldn't be anywhere close to you. They attract danger!"

"But Dad…Don't you wield a Keyblade."

He stopped pacing and stared at me as if I was absolutely insane. "Of course I don't wield a Keyblade," he said. "Why would you say a crazy thing like that?"

I blinked, leaning forward and setting an arm on my knee as I gazed at my father. Was I even more insane then I thought I was? "That day at the beach when you fought off Heartless, you had a Keyblade."

Terry shook his head, gazing at me with an unreadable expression. "Sweetheart, that's a little…far out," he said gently. "At that age, you wouldn't have even recognized a Keyblade."

That was very, very true. "Maybe I imagined it, then," I murmured. "Or Isabella planted it in my head."

"What?"

"Oh, um…" He didn't know all that Isabella did. I would have to fill him in, whether I wanted to or not. "I just discovered the other day that Isabella messed with my memories. She at least buried them deeper in my head so I can't recall them without some kind of reminder. I…There's a lot that's fuzzy and unclear to me right now, but I'm starting to gain the memories back now. The smallest things remind me of them."

"That's…terrible," Terry said softly as he turned away from me. "Steph…"

I swallowed and looked down at me knees, feeling myself get a little emotional at the thought of how easily I was played by the witch. I lost so much because of her, and even if I was gaining it back now, it wasn't the same. She inflicted this on me. It was all her fault! She would pay for it all. As soon as I won back all that was once mine, she would have to look me in the eye and see she failed. And then…Then what? Death? Did I really wish that upon her now?

"…I'm sorry," he finished.

"I'm fine."

He didn't bother protesting even if that wasn't true. "I won't let her hurt you again, ever. Where is she?"

"Locked away in the Realm Between."

"Are Olaf and the others still alive?"

"Only Gregory."

"Why is he alive?"

"He turned against Olaf and Tristan," I said honestly. Remembering back to that day, he was the one that was supposed to kill me. But instead, he protected me. Since that day, he had been a true friend to me. "He saved my life."

Terry snorted, shaking his head. "Don't trust him."

"Dad-"

"And don't trust Riku," he said, gazing at me with intensely bright blue eyes. "He's bad news."

"You don't even know him!" I cried in Riku's defense. I couldn't not trust him; he was my best friend! And the person I was destined to fall in love with. If my dad knew that, though, he would freak out for sure. "I know he comes off rough, but he has good intentions…"

He shook his head. He walked over to me and knelt down right in front of me, setting a hand on my knee as his eyes locked onto mine. "Listen to me, Steph," he said quietly. "Keyblade wielders always have their own intentions."

I remained silent, suspicious. That wasn't true. Not at all.

"I'm not trying to brainwash you, Steph," Terry said with a small sigh. "Just…hear me out. Let's say that Riku's sincerely on your side. But doesn't he act like he knows it all a lot of the time? Doesn't he try to control everything?"

…_He does_, I had to admit. He was always saying stuff like "you'll understand someday" or "just trust me." But why did I have to trust him with every little detail of my life? He couldn't control everything, no matter how badly he wanted to. He tried keeping me away from Isabella. He tried to keep me from searching for my dad, and now he was trying to keep me away from him. It wasn't fair!

"Just keep everything in mind, okay?" Dad asked as he brought me back to my thoughts. "You need to keep your eyes open. Don't trust people blindly. …I know you're good at that."

Even if my dad spoke with a gentle voice, I felt offended. I was so naïve that he knew I retained that trait even after twelve years apart. "Did you really have to say that?" I asked weakly.

"I'm sorry," he said softly, running his thumb over my knee. "I'm just really concerned about you. I've been trying to watch out for you the past twelve years, but I lost track of you when you went to Cadia. I couldn't risk making myself known when I didn't know for certain what happened with Isabella and her minions. But now…Now I'm concerned for your emotional well being, not just you staying alive. I saw how your friends took advantage of you in the past; it could easily happen again."

"I'm different now than I was then," I said with more confidence and boldness.

A small laugh left his lips as he smiled. "Yes you are," he responded quietly. "I see the fire that burns within you. You're not so timid anymore."

"I'd like to think I'm braver," I said softly. Braver and stronger. Those were two attributes that I wanted to make stronger. I wanted the courage to face new situations and the strength to overcome them. And I wasn't referring to just physical strength; that word encompassed so much more than that. I needed the strength to endure trials, the strength to stand up for what's right. Strength to finally stand up to people who wanted to use me for their own gain.

"I think you are," Dad said as brought me back to the moment. "Walking through a Dark Portal takes a lot of guts."

"Well, I trust you," I responded with a weak smile.

He smiled back briefly, though that expression quickly disappeared. "I'm going to need you to trust me again right now," he said quietly. "I need to go."

My eyes widened in shock. "W-what? Why?" There were still so many questions I had to ask!

"You'll understand later," he said, squeezing my knee before he rose to his feet. "We have to call it quits for today, but I'll track you down again soon and speak to you when you're alone." Because you don't trust Riku, I thought. But instead of saying that, I only nodded. Dad smiled faintly and took a few steps back. "I love you, sweetheart."

"I love you too, Dad," I said softly. I watched in silence as he took another step backward. Against the tan wall, another dark portal formed to take my best friend away from me. I didn't bother asking where he was going since he didn't offer the information in the first place. I had to believe that there was a reason for all the secrecy. He gave me enough reason for his absence the past twelve years for me to believe that he was sincere. Staying away twelve years for the safety of me and my mother was a perfectly good excuse for not watching me grow up. But if that was true…why did I feel so heartbroken anyway?

"Oh, and Steph?" my dad said before taking his leave.

"Yeah?"

"Try to keep this to yourself for now, okay?"

"Yeah…okay," I said softly, nodding faintly as well. I'd keep it a secret.

I watched in silence as he vanished into the portal, leaving me by myself.


	12. Chapter 12: Prison

**So excited to update the story. (: Thanks to Naivette, Crystal4458, Crescentrax, and Ravlia for the reviews for the last chapter! And remember, readers, if I have the time to pop out chapters, you have time to review. xD **

Chapter Twelve: Prison

I spent only a short time in the tunnel before I headed down the path to the outside world. It took me to an exit right by the mall, so I had no problem walking from there and finding a train to take me home. My mind was still whirling from what my dad said. He hid for twelve years just to keep me and my mom, Andrea, safe. He was always watching out for me where he could, though, watching from the shadows to make sure Isabella didn't hurt me. That was extreme dedication and loyalty. I always looked up to my dad, but now I looked up to him more than ever. He was so wise too. While I didn't agree with his opinions about Riku and Gregory, at least he didn't shove them down my throat. He left the decision up to me despite how concerned he was about me.

After exiting the train, I only had to walk ten minutes to the district where my house was. While walking, I realized that it was only mid afternoon and Riku wouldn't be back yet. Well, I'd have to look through Isabella's books after all to figure out how to break the curse on me. Despite what she said when I first encountered her, my father knew nothing about the curse on me. She just wanted me to have a bad view of my dad. Yeah, that was it. _What a witch._

Before I dealt with her personally, I'd have to find a way to break the curse. Then I'd be victorious over her. I turned a corner and saw my house within my view, though the sight I saw almost made me stop.

Two people were standing on the porch. And it wasn't just any two people. Riku and my mom. Mom? What was she doing here? I didn't like the way that this looked…

Regardless, my feet carried me to the house where the two stood. Mom looked infuriated while Riku looked disgusted and disappointed. I knew all those feelings were directed at me, but I had no idea what actually happened to cause this. "Er…What's going on here?" Why were they so ticked? And why were they even here right now?

"You tell me," Riku said, arms folded over his chest. "You were supposed to stay in the house all day and search for a way to break the curse."

_Yes, yes I was,_ I realized, momentarily panicking. But I kept my composure and lied despite my hatred of dishonesty. "I needed a walk."

"Were you alone or did you have a companion?"

"Alone," I said tensely, lying again. I couldn't lie again, not to Riku and to my mom. They were both too precious to me. "I think it's time I asked some questions now," I stated. "What're you two doing here?"

"Catching you in your lies," Riku piped while Mom was silent. "We saw you, Steph. We were watching in that abandoned district while you waited for your dad to show up."

Speechless, I didn't bother saying anything else. They…saw him? They were spying on me? I hadn't even noticed.

"How could you?" Andrea finally said in a harsh whisper. "How could you leave me in the dark and not tell me that the love of my life is alive!"

The pure fury in her voice made me take a small step back. "I…" I didn't want you to be disappointed if he wasn't alive. But once I knew, I still didn't tell you. I thought you wouldn't let me search for him, like Riku.

"He's my best friend, for goodness sake!" she cried. "I thought he was gone forever, but now I hear that he's alive. And that you're keeping me away from him!"

The accusations burned. "I didn't do that! He appears and disappears as he pleases; I don't have control over that."

"Did you try talking to him about coming back to me? Did you at least do that for me?"

"I…" No, no I hadn't done that. I hadn't even thought about my mom when I was with my dad. I had too many questions concerning my own past and everything. At least I asked him about the curse; they'd be happy about that, wouldn't they? It didn't matter, because they didn't want to hear it. Nobody wanted to hear my voice after I kept such a secret from my mom.

"So, what did you two talk about today? The weather?" Mom asked tensely, her tone biting. Degrading.

"Don't insult me like that," I whispered tightly. "I wouldn't waste a second with him. I was asking him about the curse that was put on me."

"You didn't ask him about why he reeks of Darkness?" The question came from my mom again. How much had Riku told her?

"I didn't get much of a chance to. He didn't bring it up, and we had plenty of other things to talk about."

"What, like you? _Your _shattered memories, _your _grief, _your _curse? Why is it all about** you**?"

_You…you can't mean that_, I thought as tears appeared in my eyes. But her rage was evident enough. She thought I was being selfish with my dad and maybe I was. I hadn't even thought about my mom. What kind of a person was I? I was an absolutely horrid daughter, wasn't I?

_This is why Isabella never loved you. _

"We can't control when and where he reappears, like you said," Andrea said, turning her back to me. "So we're going back to Cadia. He can find us there if he pleases." She turned to face the boy beside her, who looked conflicted. "Riku," she said, motioning with her hand for him to go to me.

That was what he did. He walked over and gripped my upper arm. As if I'd try to run away now. I had no place to run to. Instead of looking at me with only disgust and disappointment, he had more concern behind his eyes because of the fierce scolding I just received. He gently tugged at my arm and led me away from my house. I knew why he was disgusted and disappointed in me; I lied to him and ran off to my dad despite his warnings that he could be dangerous. I could feel his sad gaze on me as we walked towards where he probably parked the ship, but I didn't make eye contact with him. My gaze remained on the ground even if my tears didn't remain in my eyes. The moisture dripped from my eyes in silence as I reflected on all that my mom threw at me. I was such a selfish beast.

"Why did you have to tattle on me?" I whispered weakly to Riku. I should have had more time to sort this out, then I would have thought of talking to Dad about Mom…Right? I wasn't a complete jerk of a daughter, was I?

"You didn't give me any choice," Riku whispered in response, lightly squeezing my upper arm. "You were being so reckless, not listening to a word I said."

_I listened,_ I thought as I shook my head. _But you didn't listen to __**me**__. I was willing to face the danger to see him._ He was the person I was closest to before everything happened. While my thoughts and emotions swirled, Riku said the words that I never wanted to hear again.

"You'll understand someday."

*…*…*…*…*…*

Grounded. This wasn't the first time that I suffered this punishment. But it was the first time that I ever suffered it to this extent. I literally wasn't allowed out of my bedroom. And anything that could be remotely entertaining was taken out of my room so that all I had was textbooks. My teachers came to me to give me private tutoring. No more horseback riding or archery lessons, only dry boring textbook information to digest. Even Mr. Bottomsworth seemed to have some pity on me. My mother didn't, though. And neither did Riku.

It felt like those two were conspiring against me. Riku was hardly ever in my suite; most of the time, he was in meetings with my mom. Maybe they were trying to find out more about my dad. I kept my promise to him and didn't tell them much about the conversation. No matter how painful it was keeping another secret from them, I had to do it. My dad seemed to be my only ally right now. I wished so badly that he was here right now, but he wasn't. The security around the castle was too tight for him to reach me without anybody noticing.

It was a week since I saw him last and he hadn't come to find me yet. I couldn't believe how completely alone I felt. Riku wasn't on my good side after tattling on me and breaking my trust, and I wasn't on my mom's good side. She yelled at me a few times since that day, calling me selfish, shallow, uncaring…The list went on and on. At one point, Riku did try to console me. He said that it was only her grief speaking. She was feeling so strongly because she had been so close to Terry and believed he was dead, and now that he was alive and not coming to find her, she felt betrayed. But I still had to believe her words. I was a terrible daughter.

Perhaps this was why Isabella didn't love me. I didn't deserve it. I always thought that she was the problem, not me. I hadn't done anything wrong to deserve her wrath. But having two mothers tell me the same messages, I realized maybe I had a problem. Maybe I was a complete screw up and a brat. Maybe I'd never find approval from my parents.

Again, the tears formed in my eyes as I sat at my desk. My history textbook was in front of me, open to the page I had skimmed five hundred times over and still couldn't recall a thing from. The pages were already stained with tears that fell on other days. And they were about to be stained with fresh ones that were falling right now.

A shaky sigh left my lips as I lowered my head. My arms came up on the desk as well and shielded my face from any other eyes in the room. Nobody was there right now, though. The only person who was close by was the guard who was standing outside my bedroom door. It felt like I was in a prison cell more than anything else. If I wasn't mistaken, they even downgraded the quality of the food they brought me so I'd suffer more. This isn't right…I just wanted my best friend back…I wanted to know for certain that I was loved. But now, I know I'm hated. And I know I deserve it.

The soft creaking of the door brought me out of my thoughts, though it didn't make me bring my head out of my arms. It was probably just somebody bringing me my food. They'd leave it on the end table by my bed and then leave without a word.

Instead of that happening though, I heard footsteps coming towards me.

"Asleep, huh?" the voice asked softly. Riku. "I should have guessed. You always sleep when you're depressed. Or stuck reading one of your boring textbooks."

_I'm not asleep,_ I thought without reacting. I didn't want to, since Riku wasn't exactly my friend these days. We weren't really speaking.

"I'm sorry," he continued quietly. "But this is for the best."

_No it's not. You don't know what's best for me, I do. _

Riku walked past me and into his own bedroom. He shut the door behind him so that I was alone in my room again. I lifted my head out of my arms and nearly screamed in frustration. He had no right to tell me that this was for the best! Because he broke his promise and spoke to my mom before I was ready, our relationship was ruined! I had some fault in that, but so did he. He wasn't taking the heat from this like I was. He tore me apart from both of my parents and now I didn't even have him on my side.

My dad at least had his wish now. I didn't trust Riku.

I pushed myself out of my seat so quickly that it toppled to the ground behind me. I didn't care about the thud it made. Fortunately, I kept my balance and didn't trip over the legs that threatened to knock me down. I was such a klutz. What was I even trying to do here? As long as I was locked in my bedroom, I had no hope of finding my dad. Either he would have to come to me or I'd have to leave. The former was already ruled out as an impossibility, so I only had one choice. I needed to take action.

Because of the thud, Riku peeked his head out of his room in time to see me picking up the chair. "Steph? You okay?"

I nodded without looking over.

"You didn't hit your head?"

I shook my head.

Apparently my silence wasn't enough to get the message across that I didn't want to be bothered. Riku didn't hear a word I said, whether it was verbal or silent. Right now, my silent message should have been loud and clear: _Leave me alone; you lost my trust. _"Uh," Riku started, stepping into my room and getting closer to me with each step. "You need help with anything?"

"No."

"You sure?"

"Yes," I said. I stepped up to my desk and slammed my history text book shut before I turned my eyes to look at the boy stopped a few feet away. "Do me a favor, Riku. Stop 'helping' me."

His eyes softened. "Steph…I'm just trying to…"

"Trying to keep me away from my dad? Trying to ruin my relationship with my mom? Trying to lose my trust?" I spat. "Congratulations, you've managed to accomplish that all within the span of a few days." _Now leave me alone._

"Steph…"

"You know what, Riku? I was alright with you being a little controlling before. It felt great to have somebody I knew I could depend on. But you've taken it too far this time. You broke your promise to me about keeping this secret from my mom, and because of that, I didn't have time to prepare to tell her the truth myself." I held up my hand to Riku when I saw him open his mouth as I continued. "I should have told her from the start. I realize that now. I can't take that back now."

"And I can't take back what I did," Riku stated. "So why do you let yourself off the hook but not me?"

"Because unlike you, I realize I made a mistake. I'd take it back if I could. Would you take back all you said and did if you had the choice?"

He was silent. No, he wouldn't take it back.

"Exactly."

A knock on the door interrupted us before the conversation could carry on any further. That was probably a good thing, since Riku surely didn't want to face my wrath. I didn't want to face it either. It seemed like I was mad almost all the time; it was tearing me apart. Eating me from the inside. Changing me.

To my surprise, Gregory appeared in the doorway. "Your Majesty," he greeted me, nodding faintly. "Riku, the queen desires to see you."

Riku nodded. "Is she in her study?"

"Yes sir."

"Alright. I'll be there in a few minutes." Gregory nodded once again but didn't leave. "Is there something else you need?" Riku asked a bit harshly.

"No," the man said quietly. He wasn't intimidated by Riku or shocked by the hatred burning in his eyes; he was surely used to it by now. But despite Riku's attitude, he respectfully dipped his head to both of us and then took his leave. He softly closed the door behind him and went on his way.

"That was uncalled for," I snapped before I could stop myself, looking at Riku. Why did he have to hate everyone who was associated with the Darkness? Gregory wasn't a bad guy anymore! He wasn't really bad in the first place, only misguided.

"I didn't do anything."

"You were rude."

"Your mother doesn't want you having any visitors."

"Oh please!" I cried, rolling my eyes. "As if this is about her. You're just showing your hatred of him. He's a good guy!"

"Do you remember how he nearly had you killed?"

"Yes, I do! But I also remember how he saved my life. Do you remember that? Hm?"

"I don't have time for this," Riku stated, walking away from me to the door. "I've got a meeting with the queen."

"Don't turn your back on me, Riku." He was being a real jerk lately and I was sick of it. I had to snap him out of this somehow! This wasn't who he really was…

"You turned your back on me when you lied to be with your dad."

Riku exited the room and shut the door behind him. I groaned and turned on my feet, lifting a hand to my forehead in disbelief. I understood he felt betrayed, but he flung the betrayal right back at me! He was justifying his actions because of my mistakes instead of seeing that he was clearly hurting me. And the same went for my mother. What was I supposed to do with those two? Right now, I couldn't see a way to set things right. I couldn't do it.

But maybe Dad could.

Maybe if he told them the truth, that I hadn't had a chance to talk to him about anything because of him hurrying from place to place, they'd forgive me. Maybe they'd figure out why he reeks of Darkness and accept him like I had already done blindly.

He was my only hope right now. I needed to get to him to set things right, but how? Guards everywhere, everyone suffocating me…The idea of betraying Riku and Mom's trust again made me feel sick to my stomach. But this was what I needed to do. It didn't matter to me whether it was right or wrong; it was the closest thing to "right" I'd find right now.

Another knock on the door surprised me. "Yes?" I called, composing myself and standing tall as I looked to the door. This time, it wasn't Gregory who peeked his head in. It was his nephew Nathaniel instead. "Nathaniel?" What was he doing here? How was he even allowed inside with the guard standing outside.

"Princess," he greeted, dipping his head faintly. I shook my head faintly against that, speaking my mind.

"I think we're close enough that you'd call me by my first name, Nathaniel," I said softly.

The comment brought out one of his gorgeous smiles. "Right, sorry about that," he said. He stepped inside the room and softly shut the door behind him. Apparently he was planning on staying for a little while. "I'm sorry if I'm blunt, but we don't have much time here. My uncle can only keep the guard away from your door for so long."

Gregory was doing that? "What's going on?"

"There's a rumor going around the castle about why you're being treated so badly," Nathaniel said, bright green eyes shining underneath his ruffled bangs as he took a few steps closer so he didn't have to raise his voice. "Everyone's saying that you ran off to Twilight Town to elope with some other guy rather than marry a prince."

I could only grunt. That wasn't true at all! I kissed John, but not a single soul knew about that. No way did Riku know. And even if he did know, he wouldn't spin a vicious lie like that to keep people from knowing the truth. "That's not true at all," I practically hissed, turning away in anger. My mother must have done this. She yelled at me for not telling her the truth about Dad and now she was being a hypocrite and not telling anyone else the truth! Unbelievable.

"I figured," Nathaniel confessed. "It doesn't match your character at all."

"I can't believe the lie they're spinning…"

"Steph…" My friend stepped up to me and set a hand on my shoulder, gazing at me intently. "Whatever's going on, I can see it's not just. I want to help set things right, even if I'm not a part of this crisis."

"Do you mind if I ask why?" I inquired softly. It honestly didn't make sense. We weren't that close of friends, so why would he go out on a limb like this to help me?

"Honestly, I have a lot to prove," he explained. "A lot of people give me dirty looks because I was Olaf's son; they're not willing to see that I really do want what's best for Cadia. If I set things right in whatever this is, maybe they'll accept me."

_So, it has nothing to do really with me_, I realized. Oddly, I was okay with that. "I appreciate your honesty," I said calmly. "But right now, I don't even know how to fix this. The first step would be to get out of this prison."

"And then?"

_Then… I need to find my Dad._ But could I tell him that? Nobody was supposed to know he was alive, obviously. That was the way that Mom wanted it. But for now, I defied her wishes. Part of it was to spite her, but the other reason was to do the right thing. "Promise not to tell anyone, okay?"

"Promise."

So I told him everything. I told him first how my dad pretended to love Isabella so that he could raise me by the witch's side when there was a coup that he couldn't stop. But when she became suspicious of him, she had him killed off. Only he didn't die; he went into hiding for nearly twelve years. But now he was appearing to me whenever he wanted and not anybody else. Andrea was furious at me for not telling her that her husband was alive, and so she was punishing me. But it wasn't completely my fault; my dad stayed away for a reason.

If I could leave the castle and talk to him, then maybe I could convince him to come back.

"That's…some story," Nathaniel said. "So, do you think your dad's staying away just because of Riku? Or some other reason?"

"I have no idea," I said as I softly shook my head. He was running off so often that I didn't have a chance to ask him why he wasn't sticking around. It was frustrating.

"Well…What do you plan on doing to set things right?"

"All I can think of is convincing my dad to come back here and speak up for himself. And convince my mom that it's not completely my fault things worked out the way they did."

"But first you need to break out of here," Nathaniel concluded. He caught on quickly.

"Exactly."

"Hmph," he hummed. "Well, I'll help in any way I can."

"…Are you sure you want to do that?" I asked hesitantly. "You'd be defying the queen. She could even imprison you for treason…" It was impossible to predict how my mom would react to all this. It wasn't like her to keep me imprisoned in my room, or to treat me so terrible. All of this reminded me of Isabella, and not in a good way. That most likely wasn't possible in the first place; no memories of Isabella were good.

Nathaniel's expression was grave as he nodded to my statement. "I know. But this isn't just. Even monarchs need to be put in their place sometimes. …No matter what happens, I'll see this through."

Those were strong words from a young man that was only one year older than me, nineteen. But I knew that he was sincere. Together, we'd find a way to set things right.

"Okay," I started. "Here's the plan…"


	13. Chapter 13: Gone

**Author's note: My oh my, it's time to update already xD. I'm so excited to post these next few chapters; they were my favorite to write and contain some of my best writing and story-telling. You just wait—you'll see why I'm so excited. ;3 Can't wait to read what you guys think of it! Thanks to Crescentrax, Ravlia, SSBTMM, Crystal4458, and Naivette for reviewing the last chapter, by the way (;**

**I was hoping to post this yesterday afternoon, but the site wouldn't let me log in. =/ But here it is now! Alright, I'll stop babbling. Enjoy!**

Chapter Thirteen: Gone

Riku

This wasn't the first time Riku had such a sinking feeling in his stomach. The first time that he really felt this terrible was when he was spying on Steph and her dad in Twilight Town a little over a week ago. Not only did he feel sick that she went against her word and saw him, but he was worried sick when her dad realized that they were being watched and managed to shake him off their trail.

Now, the situation was like that but so much worse. Now he had no clue where Steph was at all. All that he could assume as that she was with her father.

"This is my fault," Queen Andrea said. She was currently pacing her office, the same room she and Riku met in countless times the past week. She had been even more of a mess than before when she found out that Steph escaped the castle and went to seek her father on her own. The two of them still had no clue how she managed to escape. All that they knew was that it happened sometime within the past twelve hours. It was morning now, and the last time Riku saw Steph was a little after dinner that previous night. When he returned from meeting the Queen, it was late. He only glanced at her bed and saw either her or pillows under the sheets and assumed she was asleep there.

_You say it's your fault, but it's really mine,_ Riku thought as he leaned against the wall_. I'm the one who went against her in the first place. Telling you the way I had to get back at her for not trusting me was a mistake. Now she doesn't trust me at all._ What was he supposed to do now? He wanted to chase after her, but he didn't know where she went. She left no clues behind. Not a single one.

"If I had only listened to what she was trying to say," Andrea continued, shaking her head. _You're not the only one who's wishing that. I'd give anything just to have her here…._Riku was incredibly ticked off, but that anger was mostly directed at himself. He ignored her. Chased her away. Chased her off so she ran into a dangerous situation on her own.

Or maybe she wasn't on her own. That was where his other thought came in. Steph wasn't the only person who was missing from the castle. Gregory also disappeared sometime yesterday. Was it coincidence that he vanished the same day Steph made her escape? Riku didn't think so. Gregory was an accomplice, and if he had Steph alone, he'd probably hurt her somehow. Riku would never trust that traitor, even if Steph trusted him with her life. He didn't like that at all. The only person he wanted Steph trusting completely was him, because he'd never purposely let her down. He just…He screwed up a lot lately by not listening to her. Losing her trust was one of many errors on his side.

Oh, what he'd do to take it back.

A knock on the door interrupted him. "Come in," Steph's mom called.

Gregory's nephew, Nathaniel, entered.

"Your Majesty," he greeted calmly, dipping his head faintly in respect to the queen before he looked to the other young man in the room. "Riku. You two wanted to see me?"

"Yes, shut the door, please," Andrea said. She was being polite despite her concerns, but Riku wasn't going to be. He was in charge of keeping Steph here; obviously he failed in that task. He wouldn't fail in bringing her back. He'd get information from Nathaniel to chase Steph down and protect her. And cherish her like he was supposed to in the first place.

Nathaniel shut the door. That was when Riku spoke up from his seat. "Where's your uncle?"

The teen blinked as if he was oblivious of a problem. "He's on vacation. He said that he had permission from you, Your Majesty."

Riku looked to the queen who was shaking her head. "I don't remember that at all."

"Where did he go?" Riku asked.

"I'm not sure exactly," Nathaniel said as he shifted his gaze to the ground. "His travel plans got changed at the last minute."

"You don't know where your uncle is on vacation? Right…" the Keyblader said skeptically, giving Nathaniel a look. When he didn't say anything in response, Riku pressed him further. "Look Nathaniel," he stated, pushing himself up and slowly stalking towards the teen that was about his size. "I'm sure you know exactly what's going on. Why we called you here. Why we don't believe that your uncle's on vacation."

"No?" Nathaniel said dumbly, not stepping away when Riku stopped right in front of him. But it was obvious he was lying. He knew something more than what he was saying.

"Oh, well then allow me to enlighten you," Riku offered lowly. "Steph's gone missing the same day as Gregory. She trusts him with her life, so if they're both gone, they're together. And you're left here to cover their tracks. Does that sound accurate? Ring a bell at all?"

"No…"

"Nathaniel," Andrea said with a sigh. She was suddenly right next to the two boys, ignoring Riku's glare directed at Nathaniel as she spoke to the young man. "We need to know where they are, for Steph's safety."

"I wish I could help, but I can't. I don't know where they are."

"But you know they're together?" Riku asked, catching onto how he said "they" instead of keeping them separate. That implied they were traveling with each other. Nathaniel seemed to catch onto his error too late. Yes, they were definitely together. "How much do you know?"

"Nothing."

"I don't want to have to do anything to you, Nathaniel," Queen Andrea said quietly. "But this is my only daughter we're talking about. I lost her once already; isn't that enough?"

How could that response not soften Nathaniel up? Riku already felt bad enough for Queen Andrea. Despite her harsh treatment of Steph this past week, she wasn't a bad mother. In fact, she realized early on that treating Steph this way was a huge error. But she couldn't bring herself to apologize; then she'd break down in front of the daughter she needed to be strong for. If Terry was alive and in the Darkness, Steph would run off into a dangerous situation. Andrea's greatest fear was that her husband was already lost. She didn't want to lose her daughter as well, which was why she tried to keep her locked up, safe. But her actions chased her away instead.

"I'm sorry," Nathaniel said, bringing Riku away from his current thoughts and back to the moment. "I don't know where they are. …They purposely didn't tell me."

"So they did leave together?" Riku stated. They must have. "You helped them escape, didn't you?" The teen across from him was silent once again. "Nathaniel, I swear-"

"Do you know how much trouble you're in for defying me?" the queen asked Nathaniel. The interruption silenced Riku. "Even if I didn't want to, there's the law that I have to uphold."

"I know. My uncle and I both knew what we were getting into."

Riku glanced at Queen Andrea. She seemed to be debating on what to do with him. She believed that Nathaniel and Gregory were both great people, but Riku wasn't convinced. Gregory had a hand in Steph's kidnapping before and Nathaniel liked flirting with her to tick Riku off. Neither of them were good in Riku's eyes. But it didn't matter what he thought.

"Nathaniel…I need you to have your things packed within twenty four hours and leave the castle," Steph's mom finally decided. Riku gave her a startled look as his hands naturally curled into fists. That was it? That was all the punishment he was getting for being an accomplice to helping Steph escape?

Obviously he was willing to accept the lightest punishment. "I'll get on it right away," Nathaniel said quietly. He dipped his head faintly in respect and then turned around to leave. In silence, he exited the room and left Riku alone with the queen once again.

"That's all you're going to do to him?" he said as soon as the teen was gone.

"Yes, that's all I'm going to do. He's a good kid, whether you believe it to be true or not." Instead of giving Riku the chance to interrupt, she continued speaking. "We need to focus on tracking down Steph and Gregory. It should be easier to track down the two of them rather than just one missing person."

"I can smell his Darkness a mile away," Riku said lowly. He hated Gregory. Could anybody really turn away from the Darkness completely and serve the Light when they still fed the Darkness in their heart? Riku knew a lot about Darkness, so he didn't think it was possible. He believed Gregory would either switch back to serving dark lords (if he wasn't already) or continue to serve the Darkness like he was secretly doing now. Either way, he was a doomed man. And so was Nathaniel since he was in the family.

"Riku?"

"Huh?" he said dumbly. Did he miss something?

"Will you go look for them?" the queen asked, speaking as if she already asked the question. It wasn't one that she really needed to ask, though. The answer was so obvious to Riku that he answered with absolute confidence in himself.

"Of course, Your Majesty. I'll not only search for them, but I'll find Steph and bring her home. I swear I won't let anyone hurt her."

But it didn't matter what he would "let" happen or not. Some things just happened.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Steph

Running away from home wasn't easy in any aspect. Not only was it difficult to formulate a plan that would actually work, but executing it was nearly impossible. Nathaniel was key to making it happen. I wondered what was going on with him right now, but I couldn't focus on him. Nathaniel insisted that he knew what he was getting into when he helped me escape. Gregory, too. While Nathaniel lingered in the castle to cover the night-time escape, Gregory accompanied me on my journey to track down my dad. We had only been gone about twelve hours on our search. Twelve hours and no sign of my dad.

I wasn't surprised, though. My dad never revealed himself when there was somebody else around. And I didn't think that he was watching over me right now, since we weren't in Twilight Town. There wasn't any "we" right now; I was currently without Gregory. We both knew how this plan would have to work. As soon as Riku realized that I was missing, he'd follow the only clue that he had: Gregory's sent. If Gregory could lead him on a wild goose chase and buy me some time, I'd have a better chance of finding my dad. So Gregory was doing that right now while I was in another world to take care of a personal matter.

I was at Disney Castle.

This wasn't my real destination, though. I needed King Mickey's help to get there. I was going to face Sorceress Isabella on my own and get the answers I had sought for so long. I would face my fear of her and deal with the rage that built up inside of me. Today, I would get revenge and make sure that justice was served for all that Isabella did to me.

Was it dangerous to go in alone? Absolutely. Did I care? Not anymore.

I did feel a little guilty for lying to King Mickey about my reason for being here, though. I had no choice but to tell him that there was something suspicious in Twilight Town that he needed to check out right away. I told him Riku was waiting there for him but my boyfriend insisted that I stay in Disney Castle to be away from the danger. He immediately bought the story and left me alone as he hurried off to "assist Riku." It didn't matter what happened once he realized there wasn't any danger. By then, I would be done with Isabella and gone again. I'd have to deal with the consequences of my actions after I rediscovered my dad.

"C'mon, there's got to be something here," I mumbled to myself as I searched the drawers in Mickey's desk. I had to find an item that would allow me to go to the Realm Between so that I could face Isabella.

There was something in the bottom drawer, something that made me stop my frantic searching. It looked like it was the same material as Riku's Gummi ship, but it was shaped like a star and would fit into the palm of my hand. The glow from it was unnaturally bright, mystifying. I reached for it and pulled it out of the drawer before I could stop myself. What is it…? I held it up to the light as I stared at it. Suddenly, the light got brighter and brighter. This wasn't because of the ceiling lights.

In panic, I squeezed my eyes shut and felt the star shard teleport me somewhere else against my will.

Where ever I landed, I was standing solidly on my own two feet. Nothing was within arm's reach for me to lean on, which was alright, since I didn't need anything to keep my balance. Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked at the star shard in my hand. It was still glowing, but it was a soft glow now. It seemed like I was going to stare here for at least a little while. But where was here? And how did the star shard bring me here without me doing anything? I looked around and surveyed the area. My eyes widened and my heart pounded because of the area that I immediately recognized. This void where nothing existed…Where the sky was blue and green and silence naturally lingered in the air…The place where dark powers were bound by this realm.

This was the Realm Between. And in front of me was the person who was trapped here by Mickey, Riku, and Sora.

"I wasn't expecting you to come, daughter," Isabella said. She was unreadable at this moment, even to me. Maybe I grew up ignorant to her being a selfish witch, but I knew how to read her mannerisms. I knew the tick in her eye that came whenever she was mad, or the sly smile that started forming on her lips whenever she had a clever idea. There was also a glow in her eye that I occasionally saw, though this glow wasn't a bright glow that revealed happiness. It revealed a hunger within her. Hunger for power, most of the time. Or somebody's misery to feed off of. Most of the time, the misery was mine. "Why are you here?"

"I found him," I managed to say. My voice was more choked than I wanted, but stern all the same. "I found my father."

"Oh, you mean the man I married," she said, feigning concern or ignorance. Maybe both. "How is he?"

"Fine. He's alive, isn't he? Even after you tried to get rid of him, he's still here." But I wasn't just speaking about him physically being alive. He was alive in my memories. I could recall him in my childhood.

"It didn't matter whether he was dead or alive, just gone," Isabella said absently, waving a hand through the air. I felt rage building up in my veins.

"I'm not just talking about him physically," I declared. "I remember him, Isabella. The memories that you suppressed are brought back to the surface again."

"Yes, I know."

I blinked in surprise.

The witch laughed. "That was the point all along, dear. I don't care that you found my husband; I care that you searched and recalled your childhood. It's messed up, isn't it? You're so screwed up because of everything I've done that there's no hope of redemption." I didn't speak, mouth agape as her eyes sparked. "You're still so naïve, though. You won't even admit to the change within your heart. You have to realize by now that the darkness has crept in because of all this."

I didn't admit to it, but I felt it. The lust for revenge, the coldness, everything. Hate and bitterness, sorrow and the wish to be in solitude. I wasn't on the path to the Light anymore."…So what if it has?" I managed after a minute.

Again, a shrill laugh left her lips. "The line has blurred, hasn't it? The Light and the Darkness aren't so easy to tell apart now. Is it alright to take a dark path for a light ending? Or to take the path of Light for your own selfish, dark purposes? It's all about where your heart is. And yours is swimming in Darkness."

"It is not," I said weakly, shaking my head as I turned away. "I'm not…that terrible. I'm following a dark path, but I'm not…"

"Not what?" she prodded. "Not…like me?"

The thought hadn't even surfaced in my mind, but… "I'll never, ever be like you," I whispered hoarsely.

Isabella only smiled. "You already are."

I heard a noise behind me, so I suddenly spun around on my feet. I wasn't prepared for what I saw, because in the back of my mind, I thought that maybe Riku managed to track me down and arrive here. Or King Mickey saw through my lies and was here to drag me out of this realm. Or Gregory somehow managed to get here and check up on me. Instead, another entity stood directly in front of me. It was myself. Me, with Isabella's cold dark eyes and stature. Everything else was just like me, as if I was looking in a mirror.

"You can't deny it," the copy said lowly, smiling softly in wickedness as she approached me. "When you look into my eyes, you see yourself. Where you've fallen."

"You're lying…" I stuttered as I backed away. It wasn't true!

"Stop being so naïve and accept the Darkness that's rising in your heart. You're already walking the path of one in Darkness, so why don't you simply put your heart into it? You'll have even more success in your endeavors."

I scoffed, stopping where I was and shaking my head. "You're wrong," I said more calmly. These were lies I could easily deflect. "The only 'success' will belong to Isabella. She's the one who wants me to turn to shadow, not me. I'm not like that." I shifted my gaze to the sorceress. "Every person stumbles sometimes. They walk down a path that they aren't destined for and get lost. But eventually, I'll find a crossroad. I'll get back on the path to Light and leave you behind in the dust."

"Strong words," Isabella stated, unconvinced. "But meaningless. I'll continue to influence your life long after the day that I'm gone forever. I'll live on inside of you."

That brought up the reason why I was here. While holding the Star Shard in my left hand, I flexed my right and summoned the sword I hadn't used in months. "You know, you're probably right," I said lowly as I pointed the weapon at her. "You will influence me after you're gone. But eventually your effect will wear off. There'll come a day where I don't think of you at all. I'll make that day come more quickly by getting rid of you now." _…I'll kill you._

Isabella didn't flinch in any way. "Kill me now and your path will be set for certain. The Light won't take you back after you murder somebody."

I scoffed without giving up my position. "You really don't know anything, do you?" I asked. I thought this over already, clearly. "If the Light doesn't take back people who kill others, how do my friends Sora and Riku still walk in the Light? They've killed to save others before."

"You just answered your own question," the witch said smoothly. "They kill to save. Why are you killing? I'm no threat to your realm; I'm trapped here, in case you didn't notice. You want to kill to satisfy your own lust for revenge."

"And Riku and Sora didn't fight to get revenge?" I challenged.

"Perhaps that was a motive. But they kill to protect above all else. You already know as much."

As much as I hated to admit it, she had a point. Did that mean I couldn't kill her? If I did, there was no turning back. Was I willing to make that move? Was I willing to risk it all just to see her dead?

"You're all talk," Isabella laughed, sensing my thoughts. "You don't have the guts to actually follow through." The witch started walking towards me calmly despite my outstretched arm, the sword staying trained on her as she approached. What was she doing now? She stepped to my side and set a hand on my shoulder, looking into my eyes as she spoke softly. "Don't you see that you've already thrown it all away? There will be no way to regain your relationship with any of your family or your friends. You've betrayed them by turning away from the Light."

_Get your hand off me, witch,_ I mentally growled. But I didn't move for some reason. Maybe because there was just a little bit of truth in her words.

"Stop this nonsense," she whispered in a voice as smooth as silk. "You're not going to kill me, so don't even pretend. You wouldn't kill your own mother."

"You're not my mother!" I suddenly snapped. While I didn't swing my sword at her, I did back out from underneath her hand. I took several steps back and felt my back come against another figure. Myself.

"Listen to her," the clone insisted quietly, smiling softly at me.

"I won't! You…You're not even real!" I finally realized. "You're just an illusion, created by this realm. I'm not afraid of you."

"But you are afraid of becoming me. That's good enough for me."

"Shut up!" I swung my sword at the figure and she vanished before my eyes. That only confirmed that she really was something that I created in my mind. Or rather, something that the realm created. I still remembered what Riku told me a long time ago: this realm would create illusions if a heart was vulnerable to them because of strong emotions. And unfortunately, that defined me at this current moment. In the background, I could practically hear Isabella snicker at my rash show of emotions. Quickly, I lifted my eyes to her and gritted my teeth. "You **will** pay for all you've done," I promised lowly.

"Then make me pay, daughter. Kill me here and now."


	14. Chapter 14: Chance Encounters

**Hola people. Here is arguably my favorite chapter to write. (: Thanks to Ravlia, Naivette, ElitePeach64, and Crescentrax for the reviews last time; glad to see you're all into the story! And if you're into the story and haven't been reviewing, please do. It's super encouraging, and trust me, it takes less time for you to review than for me to write a chapter. :P **

Chapter Fourteen: Chance Encounters

I dragged my feet as I slowly walked across the sand of Destiny Islands, my gaze down on the ground as the sound of soft ocean waves surrounded me. I was baffled. I didn't want to be in Destiny Islands right now. But at the same time, I didn't want to be in the Realm Between. My—Isabella was right. I didn't have the guts to kill her despite all that she did to me. Was I that spineless? She deserved to die after everything she did to me! I reflected back to what happened less than an hour ago, the memories fresh and raw.

"_You __**will**__ pay for all you've done," I assured Isabella, practically growling at her. I meant what I said, despite how she kept on insisting I was all talk. She would suffer for all that she did, and I would be the one to make that happen. It was my responsibility to inflict justice._

"_Then make me pay, daughter. Kill me here and now." _

_But I couldn't do it. Even upon hearing the witch call me her child, I couldn't kill her. I glared at her from my spot and pointed my sword at her while forgetting about the other item in my hand by my side. The star shard started to glow, but I wasn't aware of it until it got extremely bright. Quickly, I glanced down at it and felt my eyes widen when I realized what was happening. _

_It was going to take me away from this place._

_And that was exactly what it did. Without my permission, the Star Shard whisked me out of the Realm Between and back into the Realm of Light. It didn't take me back to where I came from though. Rather, it took me to one of the places where I least wanted to end up: Destiny Islands. _

"Why won't you take me where I want to go, stupid thing?" I mumbled to the charm, looking down at it in my hand. I didn't want to be here, because here, I could run into Sora or Kairi! And if either of them saw me, they'd be sure to let Riku know that I stopped by. I was afraid that one of them would have noticed my arrival though; looking in the sky, I could still see a trail of clouds of where the Star Shard brought me down in a sporadic, crooked path. At least it brought me down on the play island where nobody normally was; I had that going on my favor. If I could just figure out how this thing worked, then I could leave before anyone found me.

Or maybe I needed to figure out where I even wanted to go. I didn't want to face Isabella after everything, nor did I want to return to Cadia just yet. I just wanted to be with my dad, wherever he was.

"…Steph?"

_Drat,_ I thought, instantly recognizing the voice that came from behind me. If there was any time that I wished I was invisible, it was now. But at least it wasn't Riku; that would have been terrible. Hiding my anxiety, I turned around and saw the person who called my name. "Um, hey, Sora," I said, lifting my free hand and twirling the hair that was dangling over my shoulder in nervousness. He looked baffled to see me, which was either good or bad. It was good because that meant Riku hadn't stopped by and told him I ran away.

"What're you doing here?" he asked. "How did you even get here?"

"The truth?" I said hesitantly.

He gave me a look. "Of course."

"I don't even know," I confessed, deciding to be blunt. Sora didn't betray me in the past, so I hoped that he wouldn't betray me now once he knew the truth. "I…this charm, just takes me wherever it wants and whenever it wants."

Sora stepped closer to me as I lifted up the Star Shard in my hand. I didn't even know what it was called, and I certainly didn't know how it worked. "Hm," he hummed. "It looks like the same material as a gummi ship. Where'd you find it?"

"Oh, um, I Just…stumbled upon it," I lied. How could I tell him that I stole it from King Mickey? He would definitely be against me if he found out about that. Clearly he wasn't buying my lie, though.

"Okay…" Sora said hesitantly, lifting his face to mine. "So, where's Riku?"

"Um…I…I don't know," I confessed with a sigh. "I sort of, I mean, I…" I looked away from Sora, unable to lie while looking into Sora's bright blue orbs. I was such a terrible liar in the first place, and I couldn't lie to Sora when he didn't deserve it. He always treated me well, so he deserved the truth from me. "Sora," I started after a moment, lifting my gaze to the Keyblade wielder. "If I tell you the full truth, will you keep it between us?"

"Uh, yeah, I guess…?" Sora said, obviously confused.

I had to trust him. _Please don't make me regret this, Sora._ "I just recently discovered that I'm cursed, so I went to Isabella to try and break the curse. She told me that my father is alive," I started. "All my life, I thought he was gone. But as soon as I started searching for him, I discovered that Sorceress Isabella messed with my head. And as soon as I found my dad, Riku said that my dad reeked of Darkness. Ever since then, he and my mom haven't let me near him! And my dad keeps disappearing and reappearing only when I'm alone, so I sneaked out of Cadia to search for him. But not before confronting Isabella.

"I lied to King Mickey and got him to leave the castle so that I could search his office for a way to get to the Realm Between. And while I was looking, I stumbled upon whatever this thing is-" I motioned to the Star Shard "—and that took me to the Realm Between. I wasn't there for long before the thing magically brought me here."

Sora was quiet. That wasn't a good sign, since from what I saw of him, he was almost always talking. "Wow," he finally said. "Do you realize how bad this is? Not only will you be in trouble with the King for tricking him, but you're so lucky Isabella didn't kill you or anything! Now Riku probably will for making him worry so much…"

"Isabella couldn't kill me there, though; she doesn't have any powers," I stated.

"True, but she could have attacked in some other way. Tricked you with illusions and then sneak up on you and strangle you…"

"I…hadn't thought of that," I confessed weakly, shaking my head. I should have been more on guard against a physical attack; I had been focused purely on her attacking words when I was there. Big mistake on my part.

"So, let me get this straight," Sora said. He took a few steps forward and turned towards the ocean, the waves lapping by his feet as he pondered everything that I said. "You're basically on the run from Riku while you try to track down your dad. But you went to see Isabella before searching for him, even when he's your biggest priority. …Why?"

I nodded as I elaborated. "I… wanted to make her pay. She took away the memories of my father and manipulated me my whole life. It was too much for me to let her get away with, so I thought I'd go make her pay for it all. But…I couldn't follow through. I was too cowardly."

"Or you were too smart."

I lifted my gaze from the ground and looked up at Sora in confusion. "What?"

"Killing her wouldn't have done any good," Sora stated without looking over. "Yeah, it'll help you take out your anger, but then what? You still need her to help break the curse on you, right?"'

"I guess," I said as I shook my head. "She told me to ask my dad about it, and that she had no part in the curse."

"And you believe her?"

"I don't know what to believe. Obviously Riku believes her, though, especially since he found out my dad is covered in Darkness. Or so he says."

Sora hummed quietly, shaking his head. "You really don't trust Riku right now, do you?" he asked quietly.

"No, no I don't," I confessed in the same volume. "He's been treating me like a prisoner since this all started. I thought we talked it out, but it's actually gotten worse since that day. He may be convinced that my dad is evil, and Gregory too, but I'm sure they're not. I know my dad, period. And Gregory…he's proven himself since that day he betrayed Olaf. He's been nothing but good ever since then."

"Maybe, but Steph…" Sora said, turning around to face me. "If Riku has a hunch about somebody, he's normally right. I'm not saying that his prejudices aren't clouding his judgment in some ways, but…Don't just dismiss him, okay? Even if you don't believe him, keep your eyes peeled for anything suspicious. Protect yourself."

_You're taking his side, aren't you?_ I thought to myself. Instead of saying it aloud, I nodded. "I will. But…I still have to avoid Riku for a little while. As soon as I find my dad, I'm going to convince him to set the record straight with everything. Then I'll set things right with Riku and my mom."

"That's a lot easier said than done. Riku's probably on your trail as we speak. How long have you been gone?"

"Um…About fifteen hours, I think?" My estimate made Sora give me a strange look.

"And he hasn't found you yet? Geez…"

"I sort of…led him astray," I said as I remembered my cohort. "Riku thinks that Gregory is with me, so he's probably following Gregory's stronger smell. He's running around from world to world just to keep Riku off my trail for a little while."

Sora was silent yet again. It made me uneasy. "Wow. That's genius," he finally said. "…But still, Riku will catch up to Gregory eventually. Then he'll go after you."

"I know. That's why I need to figure out how to get to Twilight Town and find my dad."

"I'd lend you a gummi ship, but I need to keep one here in case of emergencies," Sora said as he grimaced. "Sorry."

"Oh no, it's fine," I assured him. "Honestly, I'm just glad you're not going to tattle on me to Riku."

Sora sent me a crooked smile, one that always brightened my day whenever I saw him in the past. "Think of me as a neutral party," he said with a smile. "I don't know enough to know what's right and what's wrong, so I shouldn't interfere on either side."

"Hmph," I hummed, a smirk appearing on my face. "That's pretty wise. And to think Riku always told me you were somewhat of an airhead…"

The brunet's eyes widened as his smile vanished. Despite the circumstances that brought me here, a small smile remained on my lips as he seemed to ponder over something. "Maybe I could take your side after all, just to get back at Riku for that remark," Sora stated with a cheeky grin. I started laughing even if he was just joking about joining my side, and as I did, realized just how long I went without laughing. Laughing and smiling were big parts of who I was; it was a shame I lost hold of them for so long. And maybe they would stay out of my reach for a while longer after this, but still, just this one lighter moment made things seem so much better than they were.

"I can't really gripe on him though," Sora said after a minute, his smile fading to a softer one. "I'm sort of forever indebted to him. If it wasn't for him, I wouldn't be alive."

Again, I hummed softly. "You two really are best friends, huh?"

"Nah," he said. His remark surprised me until he continued. "He's my brother."

A small smile found its way onto my lips as I gazed at Sora. "Right," I responded quietly. Of course.

Suddenly I thought I heard a noise behind me, just a faint one, like feet shuffling through the sand. "Sora? Who are you talking to?" a female voice asked. I turned around and looked over my shoulder, seeing a familiar redhead walk around the corner and into my view. As soon as her bright blue eyes landed on me, Kairi smiled widely. "Steph? I can't believe it's you!" She walked forward and hugged me before I could even say hello, the greeting warm. "How're you doing?"

"I'm alright," I said with a weak smile, embracing her back for a moment before she backed off. Her happiness remained on her expression as she was, thankfully, unable to sense how badly I didn't want to be in Destiny Islands.

"What're doing here?" Kairi asked with the same smile. "Sora, why didn't you tell me Steph was here?" she inquired as she looked to her boyfriend.

"Sorry," he said, running a hand over the back of his head in sheepishness. "I just discovered it myself."

Kairi hummed as she accepted the answer. "So, what's up?" she asked me. "Is Riku here too?"

"Er, no," I stumbled, glancing away and twirling my hair again in nervousness. "I came alone."

"You know how to fly a gummi ship?" she asked, growing more confused instead of excited to see me. She was starting to think through things logically, which wasn't good for me. I didn't need another person knowing my secrets.

"No, I, uh…"

"She got here borrowing something from King Mickey," Sora filled in for my sake. He briefly shared eye-contact with me before he looked back to his girlfriend. "But she's confused about how to work it, so she randomly showed up here."

Kairi's eyebrows furrowed in curiosity and concern. "Really? Hm…" She glanced down at the item in my hand. "Is that it?"

"Yeah," I confirmed with a nod, holding out the star shard for her to see. She didn't simply gaze at it with her eyes, though; her hand reached out and she held it, pulling it closer to her.

"I've seen this before," Kairi stated.

Sora was just as surprised as I was. "Wait, you know what this thing is?" he couldn't help but ask.

"Yeah, it's called a 'star-shard'. King Mickey used to use one to get from world to world when he was under Master Yen Sid's guidance."

"So you know how to use it?" I asked in awe. If she knew what this was, then maybe she could help me out! But when she shook her head, I felt my hopes diminish once again. "Right," I said with a soft sigh, glancing towards the ground. So what was I supposed to do now, just twiddle my thumbs and wait for the star shard to whisk me away again? I had to get to Twilight Town! I got lucky with the first time, but I didn't believe that I'd have that luck again. If anything, I would have more bad luck.

As if on cue, my bad luck flared up again. A bright light shone out of the top of my eye and I gasped, lifting my head to see what the source was. In Kairi's hand, the shard glowed brightly. "W-wait!"

But then the star shard whisked her away and she was gone. I didn't even get to see her startled expression before she disappeared in the light and the zigzag path appeared in the sky to show which direction she was going. She somehow got the shard to work! And she wasn't the one who needed to get whisked away. If anything, things were even worse now.

"We need to go after her," Sora said with wide eyes. "I think she may have headed towards Twilight Town. We can take the Gummi ship and get there soon after her."

I grunted and nodded in agreement, looking over at him to see his concerned expression. But he didn't return my gaze for long. He turned and started jogging in the direction of the ship, waving for me to follow. "C'mon!"

*…*…*…*…*

Riku

_They're not doing a very good job of losing me,_ Riku thought to himself, hiding in the shadows of Radiant Garden. It took him about six hours of flying around to catch up to them since they were randomly jumping from world to world, but Gregory's scent was so repulsive that he was easy to follow. Now, he finally was on the same world as him and Steph. He was bitter and tired and worried, which didn't help him feel happy. Instead, he was just cranky. He was ready to kill Gregory for helping Steph with this idiotic plan, but first he needed to catch the two of them. From his spot in the Bailey, he could smell Gregory coming his way. And if he was coming this way, so was Steph.

As soon as those two made themselves apparent to him, he'd make his presence known.

However, as usual, things didn't go as planned. For walking down the path by himself was Gregory. He was walking at a casual pace, as if he were taking a stroll. But where was Steph? She's probably nearby. The two of them wouldn't separate.

"If you two are trying to hide from me, you're doing a bad job of it," Riku said lowly as Gregory passed by him. The older man stopped walking a few steps away, turning calmly to look at the source. Riku stepped out of the shadows and looked at Gregory with piercing aqua eyes. "I can smell you worlds away, Gregory."

"I'm aware," he said without flinching. His apathy made Riku curl a hand into a fist.

"Where's Steph?"

"Nowhere near this world, I'm sure."

"Gregory," Riku growled as he took a small step forward. "I'm not here to play games."

Gregory couldn't help but chuckle once, a small smile on his lips. "Well, you just got played anyway."

"What?"

"Stephanie isn't with me. She never has been."

"Liar!" the teen cried. When his temper got the best of him, he summoned his Keyblade and pointed it directly at Gregory's throat. Even if there was still three feet between the tip and Gregory, the threat was clear.

"I'm not lying," he said without flinching. "Stephanie knew that you would try to follow me because I'm easier for you to track, so she had me running around from world to world to keep you busy while she did what she had to do."

_That's genius. Did she seriously…?_

"You underestimated her, Riku," Gregory said with a slightly smug smile.

"Shut up," he responded lowly. He lowered his blade and glanced over at the side, eyebrows furrowed over his aqua eyes. "I thought this was a spur of the moment thing; I didn't realize she had so much time to plain this…" He paused briefly before he looked back to the man he hated, getting back to the matter. "So, where is she if she isn't with you? Twilight Town?"

Gregory was silent, so Riku lifted his blade and pointed it at his neck again. I'm serious; tell me where she is. "If you value your life, you'll tell me what you know. I don't mind getting rid of you here and now. In fact, I'd rather kill you than leave you alive."

"And I do so value my life," Gregory said with a small sigh. "Stephanie didn't even tell ME where she was going or what she was doing. She did make it sound like she wasn't just searching for Terry, though."

Riku tensed. _You know that much? Steph…Why do you trust him_? he mentally groaned, shaking his head as he got back to the matter. "There's something else you're not telling me," he stated confidently. Gregory's look of guilt only confirmed that was the truth.

"She and I are going to meet in Twilight Town tomorrow at noon to discuss our progress with our little 'escape plan' and see if it needs adjustments. She assumed I would be better at leading you astray than I was."

"Well then, it's time for a change of plans," Riku said with a slight, bitter smile. "You two are meeting in Twilight Town today."

"That plan won't work," the older man said as he gazed into Riku's eyes without fear. "She'll know something is wrong."

"You'll have to convince her otherwise," Riku said coolly. "Come on, let's move."

In order to let Gregory obey his command, Riku lowered his blade and took a small step away, motioning for him to walk on ahead of him. Naturally they would take Riku's gummi ship; he was going to remain in control of this situation. He knew that whenever he saw Steph, first he'd give her a dirty look for running off without him and purposely deceiving him. But then he'd wrap her in his arms and beg for her forgiveness. He was wrong to treat her like a prisoner. He was just so worried about her. He believed that if she was by his side, he could protect her from everything. But he was wrong. He was helpless with protecting her from emotional pain. All that he could do was support her through it.

But instead of doing that, he pushed her away. He was so wrong in his methods because this was the first time that he was ever so close to somebody. Sure, he was close to Sora and Kairi, but this was completely different. He believed that he may have loved her.

A bright light shone ten feet in front of him and Gregory, making the teen grunt in surprise and lift a hand to shield his eyes. What was this? He had never seen anything like it before…

When the light diminished, he heard a gasp that was too high-pitched to be Gregory. He quickly lowered his arm and squinted at the person, though his eyes widened when he saw who it was. "Kairi?"

The redhead looked at Riku with wide eyes from her spot, though she took a few steps forward to get closer to him. "Riku?" she stuttered, glancing around the Bailey and seeing that she arrived in Radiant Garden. She seemed surprised at that, and Riku was about to discover why.

"What're you doing here? HOW did you get here?"

"I…I didn't mean to come here," Kairi said as she stopped a few feet away. She glanced down at the item in her hand, an item that Riku didn't recognize. "The star shard brought me here without my permission."

"Star shard?" Riku repeated in confusion. What was that?

"It warps whoever's holding it somewhere, somehow. I just don't know how to control it. And Steph didn't seem to either-"

"Steph?" Riku interrupted, eyes widening in size. "What does Steph have to do with this?"

Kairi gave him a confused look. "She was just on the Islands, talking to Sora. She had the star shard in her grasp and I took it for just a second, but then it warped me here."

"So she's probably still on the Islands?" he asked urgently.

"How should I know?"

"No," Riku said to himself as he kept thinking. That wouldn't make sense. If she was with Sora, then Sora was probably chasing after Kairi right now. And judging by the alignment of the worlds, he would either search this world for Kairi or Twilight Town. Or he'd drop Steph off at Twilight Town then search for Kairi… "We need to go to Twilight Town," he suddenly said.

"What? Why?" Kairi asked.

"That's where Sora and Steph are going to be," Riku said lowly. "I can feel it."


	15. Chapter 15: Head On Collision

**Time to update already? Where does the time go? Well, no matter the case, here is an EXTREMELY exciting chapter for you guys. Again, one of my favorites. **

**Thanks to Mezwantzyvs, ElitePeach64, Aimlesshadow and Naivette for reviewing the last one, hope you all (and the other readers lurking) can drop me another quick review)[/endbegging]**

Chapter Fifteen: Head on Collision

Riku

"Riku, would you PLEASE tell me what's going on?" Kairi hissed in his ear. She hadn't given him much peace ever since they were alone, and they had only been alone five minutes top. They were camped out on the top of one of the buildings in Twilight Town, the roof flat so they could walk around on it. Neither of them were walking though; they were staying low and watching the center of the marketplace court where Gregory stood. Steph could come out at any time to meet him, and when she did, Riku would be there to make sure she didn't run off again.

"Kairi-" he started as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Why did she have to be so pushy?

"Now, Riku. I noticed the death glare you gave me when Gregory was around, so I waited till now. Tell me what's up."

He sighed, glancing over at her briefly before he looked back to the man who was casually leaning against a building. "Long story short, Steph recently discovered that her dad's alive. She lived most of her life thinking he was dead."

"Oh my…That's terrible," the redhead whispered.

"She and I worked on tracking him down, but when we finally found him, he reeked of Darkness. So I smothered Steph with protection to keep her away from him, but then she ran off on her own to rediscover him. And I was stupid enough to think Gregory was with her. When I found him, he said he was just a decoy. But now I'll use him as bait to draw Steph out. She has to be here somewhere…"

"Are you sure that's wise, Riku?" Kairi asked softly, gazing at him with soft blue eyes.

Instead of giving a confident answer like he normally would have, the young man shook his head. "I don't know anything anymore, Kairi," he said quietly. "All I know is that I really care about her, and if she keeps being reckless like this, she'll get hurt. I need to do _something_ to change the direction this is going."

"Any plans on how to fix this?" she asked as she knelt down beside her best friend. She set a hand on his shoulder supportively, her gaze unwavering as she kept her voice low. "You always have a plan on how to fix problems…"

"And lately, those plans have made things worse," Riku said lowly. He lifted a hand and ran it through his short hair, shaking his head as well. "I think I'm done with the plans. From now on, I just need to follow my heart."

The last sentence brought a small smile upon Kairi's face. "It'll never lead you astray," she assured him softly, squeezing his shoulder before she looked back down at Gregory. He was still the only person there; Steph hadn't shown up yet. Maybe she wasn't even there. No, she was—Riku's gut didn't lead him astray often. He was still a little ticked that he was duped so easily. And now, Gregory had to meet Steph in a public place. This truly was a brilliant plan, much better than any plan that Riku had come up with lately to keep her safe. That would change when he saw her next. Of course he would scold her for being reckless, but he would also give her a hug and kiss her and swear to never chase her off again. She did need his protection though, and he would give it. Just more subtly.

Beside him, Kairi kept her eyes out over the area. Regulars of Twilight Town passed by, living their ordinary lives with no idea that there was something more going on here. And they wouldn't know as long as Riku had his way; once Gregory was with Steph, he'd lead her out of the crowd to Riku. Nobody would know that anything was wrong. Until that time, though, he had to be patient. Steph would come out of hiding soon enough.

Steph

"No sign of Kairi anywhere," I said as I walked down the steep hill by the train station. "She wasn't at the station or at the beach."

"I know," Sora stated as he walked a few feet ahead of me. For the fifth time since we landed on the world, he lifted a hand and ran it through his hair in frustration. "I hope she landed here. It was hard to tell by looking if it was here or Radiant Garden…" He paused, glancing around the area and debating about going to Hayner's usual spot. But then he shook his head as if to chase off the idea. "There are still more places to check out; let's head to the marketplace."

I hummed and nodded, following behind him as we headed towards our destination. We hadn't been on this world long, and we wouldn't be here much longer as long as Sora had a say in it. He was worried about Kairi, even if she was capable of fighting. With that thought in mind, I spoke my mind. "I'm sorry for bringing this on you guys."

Sora shook his head, waving it off with his hand. "Don't worry about it," he said as he glanced over his shoulder at me. As always, there was a smile on his face. "Friends always get each other in trouble. And out of it." His sweet words brought a smile to my lips. He could be a real goof sometimes, but he was sincere and sweet. I could see why Kairi adored him so much.

The two of us descended the hill into the marketplace, the bus passing by us as we entered the semi-crowded area. Right up ahead, I could see the shop where I used to work. It was so weird to be back here again; these days, it felt more like home than Cadia did. And speaking of Cadia…I stopped walking suddenly, seeing a person from that world standing up ahead. Gregory was leaning against a building casually, not facing my direction.

When he noticed that I stopped, Sora paused as well. "What's wrong?"

"Gregory's here," I said softly, keeping my focus on him. "He's not supposed to be here yet."

"So…what does that mean?"

"Something must be wrong; I should go talk to him." But Kairi…I felt guilty, so I wanted to search for her too.

"Do what you have to do," Sora said as he read my mind. "I'll search the rest of town. Gregory could be here because of your dad."

_Right, Dad. I need to get on track with that; time is short._ "Okay, I'll catch up with you soon," I said to Sora, giving him a nod in farewell. He gave me a similar gesture before I started off in a jog towards Gregory. When I was closer to him, I noticed him lift his gaze and take note of my presence. His unreadable expression did nothing to comfort me.

"Gregory. Hey," I said in greeting, though this obviously wasn't going to be a casual conversation. He wasn't supposed to be here; he was supposed to be going to other worlds.

"Your Majesty," he greeted with a small nod. He still wasn't giving me any guidance about what was going on by his tone or expression.

"What's wrong?"

"It's something we need to discuss in private," he said lowly. His hand found my upper arm and he started leading me away from the scene, towards the area where Riku was planning on intercepting me. I remained blindly ignorant, following Gregory while only worrying about whatever brought him here. Did he hear news of something going on in Cadia? Did he hear anything about my dad? Or maybe something was wrong with Riku…

I wouldn't find out any time soon, because all of a sudden, there was something else we needed to worry about. A loud crashing sound reverberated throughout the area, a screeching following it. I tore my arm out of Gregory's and lifted my hands to my ears, covering them and squeezing my eyes shut. What was that?

The unearthly scream ended a few seconds later, so I timidly opened my eyes to try and see what caused the commotion. My ears still rang as I looked around, though I didn't have to look long to see the problem. Heartless. Tons of them.

The earth was practically black with the swarm of shadows that were flooding into the marketplace. Around me, people screamed in fear and fled to find shelter. They knew how to fight but they knew that this wasn't a fight that they could win. Right now, I wasn't so certain I could win it either. But fleeing wasn't a choice; Gregory and I were already surrounded. "Looks like we have no choice," I murmured both to myself and Gregory. It was time to fight.

"We'll have our hands full, that's for certain," he said lowly. His back was pressed against mine as he summoned his sword, his green eyes glaring at the shadows that were surrounding us.

"Just a few shadows. They're the weakest out there. But I wonder why they're swarming here…" It was so completely random.

"No time to wonder about that," Gregory responded shortly. "Besides, I think we have another problem."

_Why? What's wrong_? I thought to ask. I didn't find my voice quickly enough to ask, and within a few seconds I discovered the answer for myself. The large stomps alerted me to a larger threat. Literally larger. My bright blue eyes darted over the area as I searched for the source. Then it appeared.

A Darkside.

"Oh, this is just terrific," I mumbled sarcastically. Regardless, I summoned my sword into my grasp and held it firmly by my side. If my mother knew about this, she'd scold me for not using a bow and arrow. I hardly cared what she thought about my fighting techniques though; this battle would be too harsh for just a bow and arrow. We would be fighting for our lives.

The Heartless charged in towards the two of us and the fight began.

Riku

"Riku, left!"

The young man spun to his left, slashing the Heartless that nearly reached him. _Stupid,_ he mentally swore, eyes narrowed as the Neoshadow faded into the air. The fight was lasting too long. The longer this went on, the more nervous he became about Steph. She had been fighting alongside Gregory for a while now and was doing alright, but Riku wanted nothing more than to join her. He couldn't though; he was busy protecting Kairi.

"Go join Steph, Riku!" Kairi hissed, swinging her Keyblade at an enemy. "You're more of a liability to both of us here."

"That's a lie," he panted. Kairi was a good fighter, but she couldn't stand her own here without him. If anything happened to her, Sora would kill him. Little did he know that Sora was here in Twilight Town as well, fighting his own battles to try and get to Steph. The Heartless weren't letting up in the slightest; if anything, they were getting harder. Riku was a "pro"; he could handle all these enemies. But he didn't have that same faith in Kairi and Steph; they weren't so experienced with the Heartless.

"Whenever I get the chance, I can try and make a run for it."

"There's no escape."

"I'll make one."

"Kairi, it's not that simple!" Riku boomed.

"Riku!"

"Gah." He grunted, taking a small step back when a Heartless scratched at his chest. He briefly lifted a hand to his chest, eyes shutting briefly before he opened them again and killed the beast. Instead of him killing it, though, he only wounded it. It was Kairi who unleashed a powerful spell and finished many of the Heartless that were surrounding them on the rooftop. And despite the power of that spell, Kairi still had enough energy to cast a healing spell on Riku.

"Right now, I think you just need to get out of here. You're going to get hurt if you keep fighting like this."

"And others will get hurt if I don't," he said lowly. "There's no escape here Kairi. We both fight."

"Fine, but we need a plan. We need to either stand our ground here or come up with a better idea on how to reach Steph. The Heartless are especially concentrated in her area."

"I know that," Riku said bitterly. "Why do you think I'm such a nervous mess?" He chucked his Keyblade at a Heartless going for Kairi while she was slashing at another one, aggravation in his expression. This was getting old. And he felt pathetic letting Kairi take charge here; he was the natural leader, not her. He was falling short once again in his life.

Suddenly, Kairi gasped. "Riku, look!"

He did look where Kairi was looking. And then he saw the person that was leaping the different balconies to reach their roof. "Mickey," he gasped. What was he doing here? After a few more skillful leaps, Mickey landed on their roof and unleashed a powerful wind. All of the Heartless flew off the roof and onto the ground below, most dying from the impact.

Never before did King Mickey look so glorious. He came at a good time. If he hadn't come to help them, Riku was sure he would have suffered a lot more battle wounds than he had earlier.

"Riku, there you are! I've been lookin' all over for ya!" Mickey said, wiping his brow as he took a few steps forward.

"You were looking for me?" he asked in confusion. Why?

"Yeah, I heard there was trouble in Twilight Town, so I came running. I know who the source of the Heartless is but I don't know how to beat 'em," the mouse king explained.

"Is it Gregory?" Riku asked lowly.

King Mickey blinked, as if the idea never occurred to him. "No. It's worse than that. Isabella's here!"

Riku's eyes widened considerably, and for a brief moment, it felt as if somebody had a grip on his heart because of the tension."What?"

"That's Steph's kidnapper, right? Wasn't she supposed to be locked up?" Kairi asked.

"Yes, and yes," Mickey responded to Kairi. "I don't know how she managed to escape, but she did. She's here and causing chaos; I ran into her less than ten minutes ago and tried to subdue her, but she got away. I can't follow her scent like you could Riku, so I've been trying to get to you for a while."

"The Darkness here is too thick for me to pick up on any one scent," Riku stated as he shook his head. "And if Isabella's here, that means Steph's in worse danger. We need to get down to her and pull all our forces back before the Heartless overcome us."

"What's Steph doin' here anyway?" Mickey asked as he glanced from Kairi to Riku. "I told her to stay in Disney Castle…"

_Wait, what?_ the Keyblader thought. "She was at Disney Castle?"

"Yeah…" Mickey said, his voice expressing confusion and caution. "She said that you sent her there."

"I didn't."

"I figured that by now. Riku…what's going on?"

Riku was silent for a few moments, trying to answer the same question. Steph was at Disney Castle and the Islands? What was the order of the events? And why did she say that Riku sent her to the King for help?

"Now's not really a good story-time, don't you guys agree?" a new voice said.

Upon turning around, the three Keybladers felt a wave of relief wash over them at the sight of their friend. "Sora!" Kairi squealed, running over to him and wrapping an arm around him. Even if the fighting was on a temporary hiatus for the four on the rooftop, all of them still held a Keyblade in one of their hands. It was for this reason that when Sora also embraced Kairi, he only wrapped one arm around her. "You okay?" she murmured into his shoulder.

"Yup, I'm good. You?"

"Yeah."

"When did you get here? I've been searching all over for you…" Sora asked, running his hand over Kairi's back as he gazed down at his beloved.

"I wound up in Radiant Garden and ran into Riku. He brought me here because he thought Steph would be here."

"I brought her here because I thought you would be here. I thought this world was the one the star shard took you to."

"Wait a sec, you have a star shard?" Mickey's voice intervened.

Slowly, Kairi withdrew from Sora's embrace and nodded to the King. "Steph had it first, but she handed it over to me when she came to the Islands," the redhead explained. "But as soon as I held it, it transported me to another world."

"I thought you guys agreed this wasn't a good time to catch up," Riku stated. "Should have known Sora would go against his own advice, since he's such a chatterbox."

"Sorry, Riku," Sora said sheepishly, smiling faintly despite the circumstances.

"Are you guys coming with me or not? We need to get to Steph before the Heartless overtake her."

"And Gregory too," Kairi added in concern for the other man.

Riku was silent. But he knew that Kairi was right in one way: they needed to save Gregory as well.

In this fight, they needed all the help that they could get.

Steph

Sweat trickled down my brow as I shot a Fire spell at one of the Neoshadows, a heavy breath leaving my lips as my shoulders slumped in exhaustion. I had no idea how long Gregory and I were battling these monsters, but it didn't look like the fight was ending any time soon. There must have been somebody very dark in the world for the Heartless to come out full force like this. I just didn't know how bad it was, and if I did, I probably would have freaked out. I just saw Isabella, after all. I would have been worried that I was the one who released her from her prison if I knew the truth.

"Your Majesty," Gregory panted, casting a shield around the two of us so that we could have just a moment's rest. "We cannot face them any longer, we need to find a way out of this pit."

"There's no way we can," I stated hoarsely. We were absolutely surrounded. If I had the star shard, I would have tried to use that to get us out of here, but I didn't even have that. Unless we got some help, then we were screwed. Period.

The Heartless grew in number since this fight started at least an hour ago. A straight hour of fighting against enemies that kept on becoming stronger in numbers and in force was extremely hard, especially with the position that we were in. If we could just get some distance, I could volley off a bunch of arrows and keep them away from us while Gregory utilized his magical abilities. But first we had to escape this circle we were in, and I couldn't' see that happening anytime soon. _We're so deep in trouble._

A Keyblade I didn't recognize came flying through the area, spinning as if it were a boomerang as it destroyed the circle of Heartless closest to me and Gregory. Because of this, Gregory let his shield fade and he got back on the offensive to keep the enemies away from us. While he did that, though, I couldn't help but look around for the source of the Keyblade. And then I saw him.

Dad.

My dad, Terry, jumped down from a nearby building and stood right by me. He caught his Keyblade in his grasp and held it firmly by his side as he glared at either Gregory or the Heartless. "Dad?" I said hoarsely. He looked to me, his expression unreadable. "You…you **do **have a Keyblade," I managed. He said that he didn't before.

He looked down at the bulky weapon in his hand for a moment, nodding faintly. "Yeah, I guess I do."

While the gap between me and the Heartless was greater, I finally switched from my sword to my bow and fired off shots. Fortunately for me, the bow and arrow set both held magical properties. Not only was there magic behind each attack but I also never ran out of arrows in my stock. I planned on using these factors to my advantage; I needed to keep the Heartless away and I needed to talk to my dad. "What's going on, Dad?" I asked as he shot magic at an enemy. "Where are the Heartless coming from?"

"Why don't you ask your friend over there?" Terry said lowly, nodding his head towards Gregory.

"W-what?"

"It's not him," another voice said from above us. Gasping, I lifted my gaze to the bright sky and saw four figures standing on the edge of a roof. All of them were people I didn't expect to see, but there they were. Riku, Sora, Kairi, and King Mickey. My boyfriend was the first to jump down and he was sure to land an equal distance from both me and my father, who he still didn't trust. "Mickey ran into the source herself, but she got away."

"Mickey?" Terry said in confusion. His bright blue eyes landed on the mouse, who jumped down right then with Sora and Kairi. He stared at the King in silence while the King stared back at him, the two of them seemingly unsure of what to do with the other person's presence. How did they know each other anyway?

Sora and Kairi both ran off to fight in the battle, buying the lingering four of us some time to speak. After a moment, Mickey shook off his thoughts and stepped closer to me. "We gotta get you out of here, before she gets to you."

"What? Who? Who's coming?"

"Isabella."

If my exhaustion wasn't already making me feel faint, that news did. "W-what?" I asked weakly. Isabella? She couldn't be here…she was still imprisoned in the Realm Between. Mickey was mistaken.

"She's here and causing all this mayhem, but I dunno why," the King continued without noticing my stunned and worried expression. "I ran into her myself; I'm not mistaken."

"Why is Isabella still alive?" Terry fumed from beside me, setting a hand on my shoulder to keep me steady. Riku stiffened in his spot a few feet away but did nothing to push my dad away. "You should have killed her when you had the chance."

"We thought she'd be worth more alive, in case anything happened. And it did, since Steph didn't get her powers. Something you still have to answer for, Terry," Riku said lowly.

"Riku, don't do this right now!" I hissed.

"If Isabella's really here, you've got bigger concerns than your issues with me," Terry added.

To my right, I saw a great number of Heartless vanishing. I couldn't help but look over and see that Sora and Kairi defeated all of the Heartless in their area. And to my left, the rest of the Heartless suddenly vanished despite how Gregory couldn't have possibly defeated all of them on his own.

Sora looked around the whole area like the rest of us, speaking up first. "We did it. We won!"

"We only won because Isabella wanted us to," Riku said lowly.

"Why would she want that?" I asked in confusion.

"Because," Terry stated, keeping a tight hand on my shoulder as he pointed his Keyblade at my boyfriend. "She knows that now we'll turn against each other."

"What? No!" I cried in desperation. They couldn't!

"Exactly," Riku said, pointing his weapon at Terry and ignoring me. "You're not getting away this time."

"And this time, you're not getting near my daughter," my dad responded lowly. "I'm not letting her out of my sight now that Isabella's around. That has to be your fault; you should have killed her! Steph's safety comes before anything else."

"I know that!" Riku hissed. "We kept her alive for that reason. We wanted to be sure she didn't do anything to permanently damage Steph, and she did. We tried using her to fix the problem and she led us to you."

"Are you calling me damaged?" I couldn't help but inquire, my eyes wide from surprise as I gazed at Riku. He finally gave me a second glance, his eyes softening.

He didn't have time to respond before my dad jumped in. "This is why she can't be with you. You can't treat her right and you can't protect her!"

"I'm afraid I have to disagree," a voice to the left said. I glanced over along with all the other spectators, seeing Gregory approaching the group. "Riku did a fine job protecting her majesty from Olaf, Tristan, and Isabella in the past."

"And from you, I take it," Terry said lowly.

"That's something I still do today," Riku stated, eyebrows furrowing as he pointed his Keyblade at Gregory. The man took a step back in surprise, lifting his hands faintly in surrender. He was just sticking up for Riku and now he was at the tip of his blade. Typical Riku.

"Well, what do you know, we finally agree on something," Terry said as he too pointed his weapon at Gregory. That was the final straw for me.

"Would you guys knock it off?" I cried. "This is pointless!"

My voice was unheard, yet again. In my fury, I slipped out from my father's grasp and started off on my own. They didn't chase me; they didn't try to bring me back. Instead they kept on bickering on their own.

_So ridiculous!_ I fumed. All that they could focus on was fighting with each other. Was this even a fight to protect me anymore, or was it just a chance for them all to bicker and uphold their own prejudices? Dad and Riku both believed Gregory was a traitor, but they were wrong. And they believed that I needed to be smothered with protection, but I didn't. I could watch after myself just fine.

I needed to prove it somehow, to them and to me. How could I do it? Face Isabella on my own? Actually kill her this time? That was what I'd try to do. First I had to find her.

But she found me first. The Darkness was around me before I even realized what it was. The air was heavy and suffocating as I found myself in a back alley, all alone and far away from anyone I could ask help from. "Isabella," I whispered weakly. But then I found my voice. "Isabella, come out and fight me!" _Don't take the easy way and just subdue me with this suffocation._

Isabella didn't listen to my hoarse cry. Another, softer one left my lips as I sank down to my knees. "S-stop…"

The only thing that "stopped" was my ability to stay conscious. I lost my grip on reality and succumbed to Isabella's overwhelming spell.


	16. Chapter 16: Clarity

'**Ello there readers. (: Sorry this chapter is a few days late; I got distracted (you guys know how life is). But I also got busy with a new story! A Final Fantasy XIII-2 is now published, so if you like that game, go check it out. If not, well, at least you're sticking with this story. **

**Honestly, I've been disheartened with the lack of reviews lately. Thanks to those of you who are constant reviewers, and to you constant readers, I'm BEGGING you, give me SOMETHING! I'm giving you tons after all. It's only fair. ;) If you don't start, I may start delaying the chapters. **

**I was going to say something else…Oh yeah, the length of this chapter should make up for the few days that it's late. So here it finally is, enjoy! **

Chapter Sixteen: Clarity

The Darkness surrounded me, just as it had done a hundred times before. Dreamless, I lay under the warm covers of my bed and the sun shines through the window of my home. In my unconsciousness, I felt nothing out of the ordinary. Nothing frightening, nothing hurtful, but nothing happy either.

"Steph, time for school!" a voice boomed from downstairs.

_Wait, what? _I thought at the call. I didn't push myself up out of the pillows because of my tiredness, even if I was waking up mentally. School? Since when did Riku actually call it "school" when he woke me up? And besides, that didn't sound like Riku's voice in the first place. Why would I have school right now when I wasn't even home?

"Come on, kiddo, up and at 'em," the voice said again. This time, he was in my room. And quickly approaching me.

"Idunwanna…" I heard myself say groggily.

He chuckled as he set a hand on my back. The warmth was completely different from the warmth of the sun, but in a terrific was. "I know you don't want to," he said lowly, voice soft but strong. "But you can't miss your college classes."

"Ugh, college…" I groaned into the pillow. The thoughts of uncertainty started fading away, as did my grogginess. It was all just a dream; I was in my bedroom and waking up for my college classes at the local university. That was nothing out of the ordinary. Of course it wasn't.

"Your friends are going to be waiting for you in twenty minutes; you should hurry and get ready. Or else."

I knew what that "or else" meant; it meant that he was going to tickle me. "Okay, okay," I said. "Get out."

Again, his warm chuckle entered my ears. He didn't protest as he took his hand off my back and started out of the room. Of course he'd give me my privacy so that I could get ready; he wasn't sick and twisted in any way. He was kind, sincere, loving…A little over protective, but he was still the only man that I loved.

He was my dad.

He was my only parent now, but it was okay. In Twilight Town, kids didn't ask why somebody only had one parent. They didn't treat me any differently just because they had two parents and I only had one. The love that my father gave me made up for any love I could have gotten from another parent.

In a flash, a mental picture of a wicked mother flashed across my mind. It was frightening enough for me to bolt up in my bed. Something didn't feel right here. I couldn't shake the vibe that something was terribly wrong here. But my bedroom looked the same as it did the rest of my life before this; nothing was missing or added in. And no mother was hovering over me and telling me that I was a worthless girl who was only concerned with her own well being. That would have been a lie anyway. I wasn't a selfish person most of the time; I tried to be a good person. Nobody liked a jerk, after all.

_But…who am I, exactly?_ I thought as I climbed into the shower and started preparing for the day. The question made me feel dazed for some reason. Who was I? I couldn't put it into words, nor could I connect it to my past. The past was fuzzy. I imagined this was what it was like for most of the elderly folk in their old age, but I was only eighteen. Eighteen and in college; I should have had a better memory than that. So instead of thinking deeply about the topic and getting depressed over my bad memory, I answered the question more simply: _I am who and what I am._

Nobody was supposed to know their identity at this age; this was the time they were supposed to discover it. But there was a deeper issue for me than that. I couldn't examine my past and see what made me who I am. In fact, I felt as if a large chunk of my past was missing. It felt like my identity was a lie in a lot of ways.

But despite the lie I felt I was living, I was happy. I made a bunch of new friends at my community college and was dating a boy I never pictured myself falling for.

Twenty minute later when I was dressed and ready, I went downstairs to see that boy waiting for me and talking to my father, Terry. But of course, when he saw me, his eyes lit up and the conversation ended. "Hey, Steph," he greeted with a smile.

And, of course, his smile brought one of mine out. "Hey John," I said as I walked over to him. I gave him a kiss on the cheek and smiled shyly at how brightly his eyes shone just at the sight of me. This was how it always was growing up, from what I could remember. My friends insisted that he always loved me and they were right. It took some time, but I fell in love with him as well. The only future that I wanted was by his side. First we had to create futures for ourselves though, through getting a better education and getting jobs.

We had to grow up, but we would be doing it together.

"Ready for school?"

"As ready as I'll ever be," I said with a small sigh, though I wasn't really that upset. This was just what needed to be done, so I accepted it. I was going to be a teacher. It was something I always had a passion for. The other thing I had considered was social work; I wanted to help people. I didn't know how to make a big difference in the world, but for now, it looked like being a teacher would be the most influential thing I could do with my life. I had to make a name for myself.

John chuckled and grasped my hand briefly, squeezing it before he started leading me out of the house. "I'll make sure she doesn't fall asleep in any of her classes!" he called over his shoulder to my dad, who smiled immediately.

"Alright John, but if she does, make sure she doesn't snore."

"Hey!" I cried.

But the two just laughed at the joke as John and I exited the house. This wasn't unusual for them; they always were acting chummy with each other. It only backed up my Dad's belief that John and I were meant for each other. I loved John, but…it didn't feel right to me. Whenever I was around John, my head felt funny. And so did my heart. It felt as if…John wasn't the one I was meant to have feelings for.

"Hey, everything okay?" John asked as he continued holding my hand. We had been walking for a few minutes and I had been silent.

"I…Something doesn't feel right," I said softly. I lifted a hand to my heart, gripping my necklace as I looked down at the ground. When my boyfriend was silent, I kept on talking. "It feels like I shouldn't even be here right now. Like I don't belong."

"But of course you belong, silly," John said reassuringly, smiling faintly at me. "And where else could you possibly need to be?"

"I dunno," I responded quietly, and a bit sadly. And I didn't know anything. I felt so anxious and uncertain here. Especially with John. That had happened a lot lately, but he hadn't done anything wrong. "Maybe it's just the weird dreams I had last night, about Heartless, and a group of friends I've never met, and a mouse king, and…"

"Hey, hey," he said gently, wrapping his arm around me as we walked. "Relax. You're just groggy is all. Once you wake up and come back to reality, your dreams will fade away. You'll feel better in no time."

Despite myself, I smiled weakly. "Hope you're right," I murmured as I wrapped my arm around his lower back. As was his custom, he then leaned over and gave me a kiss on the top of my brunette hair. Again I felt disoriented and confused. But why shouldn't I enjoy the affections of my boyfriend?

I took his advice and "came back to reality" and left my dream world behind as the day went on, focusing on my classes. Fortunately for me, I was alright enough at lunch that my college friends, Hayner, Pence, and Olette, didn't notice anything wrong. It was the same deal when I went home and my dad asked about my day. I told him all about the boring classes and how swamped I was with homework tonight. I wouldn't have any time to dwell on these weird thoughts of mine, nor would I have time to try and find some sort of solace.

And, of course, he asked me how things were with John. I told him the truth: things were fine. He was a sweetheart and he treated me well. For the millionth time, my dad commented on how he hoped the two of us stayed together; if anything had to take his princess away from him, he wanted it to be a decent guy.

When he used the name "princess", I got chills. What was up with that?

It was another question that I ignored. The questions were racking up now, but I simply ignored them. After homework, then I could consider what was wrong with me. If that time ever came. I predicted that by the time I was done with my homework, I'd be too exhausted to do any soul-searching. Besides, it was easy to come up with excuses to avoid digging myself deeper in this issue. What if it was too big for me to face? I may have been seen as a coward for avoiding it, but really, I was smart. No need to face a problem that I didn't need to.

That night I went to bed and slept my troubles away. For the time.

*…*…*…*…*

Life continued on as usual the next few days. The daily routine was always the same: Oversleep, rush to get ready, go to school, come home, do homework, sleep. There was some socializing and eating thrown in there somewhere too. Everything around me was perfectly normal, and yet…Yet I still didn't feel comfortable.

Was it my friends? Absolutely not. Hayner, Pence, and Olette were only my friends since I started college this fall, but I was always happy with them. Hayner could come across as a jerk, but by now I knew how sincere he really was. Pence was a dork, but sweet. And Olette was a motherly figure who everyone spoke to about trouble. But I couldn't talk to her about this; I'd sound like an idiot. John already was looking at me like I was a stranger because of how I acted the past few days.

It was like I was in a fog. Lost in a maze without a map on how to get out. My head told me that I was just sick of this mundane life and trying to find my place. It said there should be more to life than this, but there wasn't. My heart told me otherwise. My heart said that not only should there be more to life, but there was. I was meant to be living it right now but I wasn't. Why wasn't I? Why couldn't I break out of this fog I was in?

Things that were fresh on my mind from my dreaming the other night were faded away. They were shadows of the memories they once were. Maybe it all was just a dream, or a dream of a dream. It hardly mattered now. This was my life. Right or wrong, this was it. It didn't seem like there was any way to get to the right place, where I belonged. The fog was becoming normal. Still, I wondered who I was and what I was doing. And why I felt so empty.

The afternoon of the third day, I was walking home from school by myself. Everyone else was going to the Struggle Tournament, but my heart wouldn't be in it if I went. I feigned sickness, which was a valid excuse for everyone else. They began noticing the differences in me and thought it was just because I didn't feel well. I let them believe it, but I myself did not. Something just wasn't right! What was I doing here? What was my purpose? I had a greater destiny than this! I knew I did!

I suddenly collided with somebody while I was walking because of my lack of attention. I backed up a step, stumbling slightly as I regained my composure. "I'm sorry," I automatically said to the person before I looked up and saw their face. It was then that I felt at a loss.

The person before me was half a foot taller than I was with silver hair that only partially hid his eyes and barely reached his shoulders. He was built strong, but at the same time, he was still eighteen like I was. But unlike the first time I saw him so long ago, it wasn't his physical features that held me captive. It was those dazzling aqua eyes.

"I know your face," I whispered to both myself and to him. My bright blue eyes darted over his stern face, trying to pick out what emotions were present. Seriousness was one, but if I wasn't mistaken, I saw some sorrow too. And love.

The name hit me like a semitruck. "Riku."

This was Riku standing right in front of me. My best friend. He came to save me in the past when Darkness overtook all of Twilight Town. Then we travelled together and we started falling for each other. But not before we discovered I was a princess to a far away kingdom. Since then, we spent every day together and fell for each other more and more.

My head was pounding so hard at the sudden rush of memories that I sank down to my knees, a small groan leaving my lips. Riku. **Riku**. This was the reason that my life was so empty. He wasn't with me. He wasn't there to force me back on the right path and face my destiny.

The world around me began to blur and Riku just stood right in front of me, gazing down at me with the same expression he held all along. I glanced up at him and saw him fade last of all, his eyes burnt into my memory as new surroundings became more clear to me.

It was purely black. But instead of being cold like the Darkness normally was, this place was the perfect temperature. This was the type of place where any person would want to take a nap. That was the whole point of this place: It was meant to keep the unconscious asleep.

Despite the dimness of the area, I looked around to try and see where I was. I was floating in serenity, perfectly comfortable and content. Except that the person who brought me out of the fog wasn't with me. I'd fight to get to him. But first I had to get out of here.

My bow and arrow both appeared in my grasp as I put the arrow in its place. My fingers pulled back the string and it quivered with the tension. Where was I even shooting? Wherever I felt the arrow was meant to go. I prayed that God or whoever was in charge of my fate would guide my arrow so that it would hit the mark and that it would actually serve its purpose. The arrow glowed after my prayers were said, providing a light in the area to both comfort and guide me. "Come on, hit the mark," I murmured as I randomly pointed my arrow at the wall in front of me.

It launched and struck the wall. Immediately light engulfed the area. It was bright enough for me to cover my eyes with my arm. Something was changing. The air was losing its comforting heat and the darkness was completely gone. I also heard the sounds of an opening door, or something of the sort. I couldn't resist opening my eyes and looking out, blinking in startlement as the pod opened and revealed a circular room that was somehow familiar to me. Just by the air, I could tell that I was in Twilight Town. Or rather, the imitation version of it. It was just something that I could sense.

But I wasn't alone in this room. In front of me, a shocked Isabella stood outside the pod. And then I felt more clarity than I had in weeks. Isabella knocked me out and dragged me here. She was going to have me stay asleep in that pod forever!

As if realizing what I was thinking, she turned and started away. "No you don't!" I heard myself cry hoarsely. I quickly jumped out of the pod and landed on the outside, but my feet weren't steady right away. I fell down to one knee as I grasped my bow in my hand, eyes wide as she headed towards the exit. But then they narrowed. _You won't get away this time._

I summoned an arrow to my hand and quickly set it in place before shooting it off. My aim was right on. The arrow pierced the sleeve of Isabella and pinned her against the wall several yards away from the exit. She turned to face me, surprisingly nervous as she lifted her other hand to remove the arrow from her sleeve.

I thwarted that plan when I pinned that arm to her other side, another arrow in her sleeve but not piercing the witch. Looking at her now, frightened and weak, I knew that I had another chance to do away with her for good. This devil could no longer haunt me if I were to get rid of her now.

"You know something," I started calmly. Walking over to her, I placed another arrow in its place, my weapon ready to fire. "I've been wanting this for so long, Isabella. You took away everything from me by taking away the memories of my dad. And just now, you nearly did it again." The bitterness rose in my heart as I glared at her, a few yards away as I stopped. "You tried keeping me asleep for good, happy in my own little dream world. But you miscalculated. I love life _even if_ it is full of pain. It's not something that I'll give up just for sweet dreams."

Isabella stopped struggling against the arrows, instead staring at me behind her dark black bangs. Panic was in her gaze, but so was resignation. She accepted the fate that she would face at my hands. But I had a lot more to say before I actually did anything to her. And she would listen. She had no choice.

"All my life, I've been told what to do. And I've done it. I never let anybody down. Not even you, since I'm sure you never had any real expectations for me. I was just a pet you kept around. I may have loved you, but I know now the feeling wasn't mutual. That's okay though. Who would want the love of such a wicked witch?"

I fiddled with the arrow on my bow before I raised it. Naturally I pointed it at her heart and pulled back the string once again as I took aim. "I have your life in my hands now, just as I did in the Realm Between. I couldn't finish it then, but I sure can now. And I will."

As I took in one last breath, I gathered my courage to do what I should have done a long time ago. I shot off the arrow for its target. With the close proximity, it would have been a lethal hit if it actually pierced Isabella's heart.

That was why I changed my aim at the last minute. The arrow pierced the wall right next to her without doing any damage. The frightened witch, who shut her eyes at the last minute, opened them when she heard the thud of the arrow hitting the wall. It didn't hit her. It wasn't meant to. Shocked, she lifted her eyes to me.

"It's finished," I said confidently. _Done._ "I've put it behind me, Isabella. You've done evil with me, but I won't repay your evil with more evil. I'm not a killer. If you're meant to die, you will die. But it won't be by my hand."

With that, I turned around and started walking out of the room. I felt more peace than I had felt since finding out the truth about her. Everything was in destiny's hands from here. But my decisions were still mine, and I chose not to kill her. I chose not to do what was expected of me, or what was my right.

"Oh, and one more thing," I suddenly said, thinking of something I forgot to say before. I turned around and looked to the wall where Isabella was two seconds ago. But while my back was turned, she took the opportunity to teleport herself out of this fake world and away from me. Despite the fact that she couldn't hear me, I smiled and said my thoughts.

"I will never be your daughter."

My business was complete. I wordlessly turned around again and started out the exit again. My steps were lighter than they were before; a burden was taken off of my shoulders. I knew that I did what was right, morally and with myself. If I killed Isabella, she would have won in the end. She would have proved to me and to the world that she ruined me enough to turn me into a vengeful murderer. But she didn't have that power any more. She had nothing on me.

I entered the computer room of this false reality and saw that the computers were already destroyed. But the beam that would take me back to my Twilight Town was already shining strong. There was somebody waiting on the other side; I was sure of it. I had to face him.

Sighing to myself in anticipation, I took a few steps forward and touched the beam. A certain lightness surrounded me as I teleported to the other side, the other world where I belonged at that time. As soon as I opened my eyes, I noticed two people pacing at the rest leaning impatiently against different walls. King Mickey was at the computer trying to crack a code that would allow them to get to me, since the beam apparently only worked one way. Somehow they knew I was here, but that didn't matter now. All that mattered was that we were all together again.

My attention quickly shifted to the two men who stopped pacing the moment I came through the portal. Riku and my Dad both stared at me agape, finding their voices at the same time. "Steph!"

Immediately I started tearing up. In my dream world, my father wasn't strong enough to break through to me and bring me back. Maybe that was a sign he wasn't strong enough to stand up for me here either. But Riku was. I stepped out of the area and quickly walked up to the young man I loved, wrapping my arms around him as I broke down. "Riku," I sobbed into his shoulder, holding him tightly as I lost my composure. "I-I'm so sorry!" I cried. I should have trusted him. He was right all along in saying that I needed his guidance. He was right in saying that I was being reckless. And he was right about me being immature. I could only hope that he would take me back.

And he did. Instead of whispering "I told you so" in my ear, he wrapped his arms around me tightly and shushed me. "Shh," he insisted softly. He ran a hand over my brunette hair as I clung to him like a child clung to their parent when they were afraid. Still I didn't quiet down. If anything, I started crying harder because I was so touched by how easily he accepted me. As tears flooded out of my eyes, Riku lifted one of his hands and raised my chin so that I was looking up at him. It seemed like he had something to say so I opened my eyes and looked at him. He surprised me by smothering my cries with a kiss. The kiss burned with passion and love, but also gentleness and care. I kissed him back in the same manner, forcing my crying to calm so that I could kiss him back. He accepted me, completely. After a few moments, he released me from the kiss so that I could take in a breath. I took him up on that opportunity and leaned my head against his shoulder, sniffling once.

Again, Riku shushed me. "It's okay," he said softly, reassuringly. "Are you okay?" I nodded into his shoulder as more tears escaped my eyes and stained his vest. Did he even know that I wasn't crying because I was hurt? I was crying because of the regret. I felt so terrible for how I treated him lately. But I also felt so worn out now that I was back in this reality. Isabella was gone but I was here, and I had to face the consequences of my actions.

I had to rebuild the bridges that I burnt.

"Steph…You were taken by Isabella, but…" Sora was the one speaking, uncertainty coming through in his voice as he stumbled through this. "…Did you…Um…Where is she?"

"Gone," I said softly, turning my head out of Riku's shoulder and looking at the others in the room. For the first time since I got back, I was taking in their expressions. Kairi looked sorrowful for my sake, Sora was both sad and confused, and so was King Mickey. My Dad looked torn between being angry and sad. Most likely he was sad because I ran to Riku's arms when I got back, not his. I was Daddy's little girl, but Riku held my heart.

"Er…What do you mean, gone?" Sora inquired again.

"I did what I had to."

"…"

"And that was to let her go," I finished. Riku grunted in shock, but I knew that it was a good kind of shock. I looked up at him with moist eyes, though my tears were mostly gone by now. "I couldn't kill her, even after all that she did to me. Now I know it's not because I'm weak, but because I'm strong enough to not let her change me at my core."

"You could never become a murderer," my boyfriend finished for me, his voice hushed as he fully comprehended it all.

"Exactly," I responded with a small nod. Despite the horrible circumstances, Riku smiled. His smile was rare in the first place, so seeing it here made me feel so reassured. It felt like my heart could explode.

"I'm proud of you, Steph," Riku whispered in my ear, squeezing me more tightly as he continued to hold me in his embrace. My father was silent.

After a few moments of silence, we all seemed to realize what needed to be done next. I would need to summon all of my courage for this next task, because otherwise, I would crumble under the pressure. Facing my former mother was a big deal, but facing my real mom would be just as hard after all that happened between us.

Riku was the one who was brave enough to get the ball rolling. "Let's go home," he said quietly.

And we did.


	17. Chapter 17: Home Sweet Home?

**Wow, feels like I haven't updated in forever. O.o Sorry guys! Been really busy with school and another story lately (don't worry, this one isn't getting dropped. Just slowed down so that I can give you guys the quality chapters you deserve). You know the drill, read, review, and have a good day! **

Chapter Seventeen: Home Sweet Home?

It was only Riku and I who walked down the hall of the Castle in Cadia towards my mother's study. Sora and Kairi had returned home, and so did King Mickey. He didn't even scold me for lying and taking the star shard. He said that he saw the same spirit in me that he saw in himself: a spirit that compelled the heart to do whatever was necessary in order to help those you care about. That was a huge compliment, and a mercy. Of course he took back the Star Shard, but I didn't need it now anyway. I was going to be grounded for a very, very long time.

I wasn't sure if Riku would be facing my mom with me or not; all the way home, he was reassuring me that my mom blamed herself for what I did, not what I actually did. She chased me away, she said. That's what Riku said as well, and he apologized for it greatly. Of course I forgave him. How couldn't I? I was in the wrong much more than he was.

Riku may have forgiven me, but he didn't forgive Gregory. That prejudice would never die. He passed on the queen's order that Gregory was to pack up his stuff and leave, just like his nephew Nathaniel. That made me sad; those two put their lives on the line just to help me, and now they were being punished. But at the same time, I knew that was the lightest punishment my mother could impose. She had to keep the law in her land. She couldn't make exceptions just because these people had good intentions. I accepted their fate with a heavy heart and vowed that I would work to make it up to them somehow.

The door to my mother's room appeared within my vision. My steps slowed automatically. Despite what Riku said, I was scared to face my mom. I ran away from home; I deceived her. I lied to her about her husband being alive. And now I wasn't even bringing him home with me. He said that he had business to take care of first, but he'd come home soon. He seemed…different, when he said that. Maybe because I ran to Riku and not him when I was distraught. I still didn't regret it, though I did wish that I didn't have to sacrifice one relationship for another. Maybe I didn't. I still had time to be proven wrong.

"Riku," I said softly, coming back to the moment. "Will you…come with me?"

My boyfriend nodded silently, keeping his hand on the middle of my back as he led me closer and closer to our destination. "I'll stay as long as she doesn't order me to leave," he said softly.

_That's all I can ask for, _I thought. The door was right in front of me, so I set a hand on the knob_. Courage, Steph. Be brave._ I exhaled a soft breath before I turned the knob and pushed the door open, revealing the suite that belonged to my mom. It was a brightly lit room with the lights turned on and the windows open, sunlight spilling in and reflecting the hopeful personality that my mom had. All I could do now was hope that she would forgive me.

I stepped into the room when I didn't see anyone standing there. "…" I opened my mouth to call out for my mom, but I couldn't find my voice. Instead of speaking (or attempting to speak), I looked around the room to the white couches to my right. That was when I noticed her on a couch, looking over paperwork. But as soon as she sensed a gaze on her, she lifted her head and saw me. That was when her expression changed from all-business to an emotional wreck. My expression mirrored hers, and without hesitation, I quickly closed the distance between me and her. She rose off the couch and met me halfway, embracing me in a hug that only a mother could provide. A true mother.

"Mom…"

Andrea shook her head, setting a hand on the back of mine as she cradled my head. "I need to speak first," she whispered, voice shaky. I silently nodded, knowing I had no right to speak after running off. "I have been a terrible mom," she said to my startlement. "I chased you away; I was wrong not to even give you a chance to speak."

"But I was wrong not to tell you that Dad's alive," I interrupted softly.

"I'm sure you had your reasons," Mom responded soothingly.

Reasons? Yeah, not really. Not ones that made much sense anymore. "At first, I didn't know for sure if he was alive. And then once I found out, I didn't know anything, so I thought if I could find him and convince him to come home with me, it'd be better than returning with no news at all."

"I only wish you told me so that I could help you," Andrea said softly, pulling back from the embrace. She set her hands on my shoulders and gazed at me, at my height. "I love you, Stephanie. But I love my husband as well…"

"I'm so sorry, Mom," I said softly. "I know I should have told you. I was wrong."

"I'm sorry too." She gazed at me for a few moments through moist blue eyes, her hand coming up and delicately wiping some of my bangs out of my eyes. "I'm proud of you for standing up for yourself, though. You didn't give up just because everything was against you…"

A weak smile appeared on my lips. "I guess I'm stronger than I thought."

"Sit down and tell me everything," Andrea said. "This time, I'll listen. I promise."

So we talked about everything. Riku came over to join us but he was quiet for the most part. I told her about the clues I used to track down my dad, and the times that I found him. I told her how he was keeping a lot of secrets from me and running off before telling me what was up. But we both ended up agreeing that he would come around whenever he was ready to. All we could do was trust him.

And then once that topic was done, we spoke about Isabella. Not even Riku knew that I first went to Disney Castle to confront her before she somehow escaped and captured me in Twilight Town. I told both of them the whole truth of that situation: I wanted to kill her because I was so bitter about my past and all that she did. But in the end, I discovered she wasn't worth it. She wouldn't define me any longer.

After talking for what felt like an eternity, my mom sent me to my room. Not as an order or as punishment for my actions, but to let me get some rest. I must have looked pretty exhausted.

So Riku and I went back to my suite, where everything looked the same as I left it. Except for the blankets uncovering the pillows that I had under the sheets to look like me. To think that Riku had been fooled by something so simple…Well, he didn't look into it because it was nighttime and he thought I was asleep. He was wrong.

Instead of walking over to the bed, I sat down on the couch. I was tired but not ready for bed yet. Besides, it felt like Riku and I had unfinished business here.

"Let me guess," Riku said softly. "Now it's our turn to talk?"

"Yeah," I responded with a small nod, patting the couch beside me. Without hesitating, Riku came over and sat down next to me. His arm went over the back of the couch behind me but not around my arms. Honestly, it was better than what I was expecting: I thought he'd sit far away from me because he was angry. If he was even angry. I didn't even know. So that was why I asked my next question. "Are you mad?"

"At myself, for a lot of stuff," Riku said softly. "Like how I freaked out on you and made you run off like that. And how even when I had you with me, I still managed to get caught up in my own grudge and let you get into a dangerous situation. I'm so…furious that I vowed to protect you but gave up that goal right away."

At that, I glanced down at my lap. I hadn't known that Riku vowed to protect me recently; I knew he did in the past, but I didn't know he rekindled the vow and then left me to fend for myself. Before I could tell him to lighten up on himself, he continued.

"I don't even know why I acted that way," he continued. "I guess…Maybe the Darkness still has a hold on me after all."

My eyes widened drastically as I looked over at the boy beside me, though his gaze was down. "Riku!"

"No, it's true," Riku said as he shook his head softly. "All this Darkness in the air…I was so scared that you weren't ready to face it that I tried to keep you as close to the path of Light as I could. It may not seem like it, but I was on the path to Darkness. Any path that isn't Light is Dark."

"Isn't there any middle ground?" I whispered. This was a lot of what I dealt with myself lately. Was it okay to take a dark path to reach a light ending?

"I used to think there was," he responded, not aware of my thoughts. "I said that I walked the path between Light and Dark; the Road to Dawn. My views changed when I saw people who were in Darkness and undeniably wicked and the people who were in the Light and undeniably good. I thought to myself, 'There can't be any middle ground. You're either evil or you're not.' And because of my past struggle with the Darkness, I shrank away from everything that could connect me to the Darkness." He paused, looking over at me then. "But maybe you're right. Maybe things aren't so black and white. There are so many gray areas that maybe it's impossible to even tell if you're on the path to Light or Dark until you reach your destination."

"I have no idea anymore," I said softly. I turned my head to the side and leaned it against Riku's arm that was running along the back of the couch. "I guess…It doesn't matter too much what you label something. It is what it is, whether you can define it or not."

"It is," he agreed. "But I still want to be able to define what's right or what's wrong. I hate this uncertainty."

"There are so many questions…"

"…And so few answers," Riku finished. He sighed, wrapping his arm around my shoulders and pulling me closer to him. The warmth of his embrace made me shut my eyes in comfort. I had missed feeling this close to Riku. It had been a while since we weren't fighting. We were finally at peace with each other, but not at peace with what was going on in our lives. "Someday we'll figure it out," he said quietly, looking down at me as I leaned my head on his shoulder. "Until then, at least we have each other." He hmphed, smiling faintly. "We can be clueless together."

"Sounds fun," I said sarcastically, though a small smile appeared on my lips. I lifted my head and looked up at Riku, his small smile matching my own.

"I'm open to other ideas," he stated as his smile changed into a smirk.

"I got none, sorry guy."

"'Guy'? That's the best name you can come up for me?"

_Hmph. There's just no satisfying you,_ I thought, shaking my head faintly against his shoulder as I looked up at him. "What, would you rather I came up with something cuter, like 'snuggly boo'?"

"Snuggly boo?"

"Or 'Sugar-Pie Honey Bunch'…"

"That sounds the name of some weird cereal. Or pie. I can't decide which…"

"'Sweet Tart?'"

"…"

"Oh! How about 'Sugar Muffin'?"

"Most of these names involve food…Are you hungry or something?"

"…Maybe," I admitted. But mostly I was coming up with the most ridiculous names I could. Both of us knew that there were no pet names appropriate for a "tough guy" like Riku. Besides, I wouldn't want to call him anything but his name. Riku. I loved saying it, because despite the arguments, I loved having him in my life. Just like I finally realized that I was in love with him. But I would tell him that another day. I wouldn't ruin this goofiness.

"How would you feel if I called you weird names like that?"

"Weird? I worked hard on those," I whined, looking away as if I was offended. Despite my terrible lying skills, he believed me and was silent. Chuckling, I looked back up at him. "Kidding!"

"…Jerk."

"It's only to make up for the times when you were a jerk to me."

Riku arched a brow. "Like?"

"Like when I woke up and freaked out about being late to class, and you waited to tell me that class was cancelled."

He was silent after that, and I couldn't help but smirk. "I win," I said.

Riku sighed, lowering his head so that his face was in my hair. "Yeah," he said into my hair. "You win."

But we both knew that was far from the truth. I won the little teasing match we just had, but we both were winners now. We were alive and together, and there was no longer a threat. Well, sort of. Isabella was out there and free to do her business, but she couldn't come here. This was our safe haven; our private heaven. There was nothing that could happen to collapse that.

I snuggled up closer to Riku, an arm wrapping over his stomach as his face stayed in my hair. We didn't fear anyone walking in on us; my mom was smart enough to assume that Riku and I had to talk things out. She didn't know we were a couple, but she did know that we were best friends. That was what we would always be, or so I hoped. I didn't want to lose this person who managed to break down my walls and care for me despite my many imperfections.

I loved him. Now I could just hoped that he returned the feelings.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Feelings, I figured, would have to wait till another day. After a while of cuddling, Riku and I both departed to our separate beds. We were both really tired from all the running around we did, whether it was before or after I took Gregory and went off on my own. But I went to bed before Riku did; he sat in the room and was watching the TV quietly for a little while before he decided to sleep. I had the curtains on my canopy bed around my bed even after he was gone since I was asleep by the time he turned off the TV. I just had it closed so the light wouldn't bug me when I was drifting off to sleep.

The hours passed on and on, even when the clock struck midnight. Why wouldn't things go on like normal? It was a normal night.

Or so I thought.

A startling dream suddenly woke me up. Somebody's hand was over my mouth. But I quickly realized that it wasn't just in my dream. Somebody's hand actually was on my mouth! I started struggling against them, but they were strong. Their other hand was first on my arm as they pulled me closer to the edge of the bed, but then around my stomach as the dragged me off the bed.

"Let me go!" I cried through their hand, though my voice was muffled and very quiet. They didn't listen anyway, dragging me into the corner of the room where the shadows were especially heavy. And that was where he stopped. What the?

"Shh," they shushed. "Steph, it's me. It's Dad."

My eyes widened, and then I stopped trying to talk or cry out. Dad? I glanced over my shoulder and was barely able to see him in the darkness, even when we were so close. But it was him. Instead of fear, my heart was overwhelmed with confusion. I turned around to face him completely, eyes narrowing. "And you couldn't have told me this two minutes ago?" I hissed, whispering because he shushed me.

"Quiet."

_That's all you have to say_? I thought. But before I could respond, he gently put his hands on my shoulders and turned me so that I was facing the rest of the room. After a few moments of tense silence, the door to my bedroom creaked open. I didn't know who would be coming in at this late hour; it was just past midnight. Then I saw that it was more than just one person; it was a bunch of men, dressed in armor. Men from the Castle Protection Service, or the CPS. They were like the secret service. If they were in my room at this late hour, there must have been something wrong…

All of them surrounded the bed that was surrounded by sheets, as if prepared to pounce on it. But they didn't. All at once, they pulled out their crossbows and aimed for the bed. Dad's hand came over my mouth just in time to silence the gasp that left my lips.

They shot the arrows into the bed, unable to see that I wasn't in it because of the curtains. They didn't need to see it; they assumed I was asleep in there. Why wouldn't I be at Midnight? They shot multiple arrows each just to make sure that…their job was done.

But that made quite a ruckus. The door of Riku's bedroom slammed open and my boyfriend stepped out shirtless in alarm. "Steph!" he screamed. It broke my heart to hear that and I nearly stepped out to tell him I was okay.

Before I could take any action, the eight men with weapons turned around and shot their arrows at Riku in hopes to kill him. He was quicker than they were. He summoned his Keyblade in a flash and cast a shield around himself as he deflected the last of their ammunition. As soon as they saw how in trouble they were, they all fled.

Riku didn't give chase; he ran over to the bed immediately to check on me. "Steph?" He pulled back the curtains and saw all the feathers from the sheets and pillows, but not my body.

"Riku!" I called shakily from the corner. He spun around in alarm as I stepped out of the shadows, along with my dad. As soon as his eyes landed on me, relief flooded his expression. He summoned his Keyblade away as we both closed the distance between each other. We didn't embrace, but his hands found my face as he looked me over.

"You okay? What just happened?"

"My Dad," I said, glancing over at my shoulder and looking at the man who was approaching us. "He hid me in the corner before they came in."

Riku sighed, keeping his hands on my face as he looked to my Dad. "How did you know they were coming?" he asked, dumbfounded.

"I've been observing Cadia ever since you guys came back yesterday evening," Terry said, looking from me to Riku. "I overheard things I wasn't meant to hear and learned of what was going to happen." He shook his head, turning and looking away. "This was the only thing I was able to do."

"Why? What's going on?" I asked as Riku dropped his hands and I looked to my Dad.

His expression when he looked at me was angry, bitter. "It's a coup."

Riku and I both grunted, startled. But there was no time to linger in shock.

"You need to go, both of you," he said. "Andrea's in danger, and so are you as long as you stay here. Leave. Go somewhere safe."

"What are you going to do?" I asked. He made it sound like he wouldn't be joining us.

"I'm sorry, Steph. …I can't stay here."

"Why not?" He had to stay; he had to help protect me and my mother!

As if sensing my thoughts, he stepped over and wrapped me in his arms. His strong arms around me made me feel safe, even if this was an extremely dangerous situation. I hugged him back despite my confusion, knowing that he could disappear again at any time for any amount of time.

"I'm sorry, sweetheart," Terry whispered. "I'm sorry for all the secrets. I'm sorry I can't help you fight this fight. But soon, I'll be able to tell you everything. I promise. Please…" He lifted a hand and tucked back some of my brunette hair, his blue eyes gazing at me in sorrow. "Please just trust me for a little longer."

I was the one to pull back from the embrace first this time. I looked up into his earnest, bright blue eyes, seeing how he was pleading with me. It was genuine. Absolutely genuine. I smiled faintly, shutting my eyes briefly. "I do trust you," I said softly. "I always will." I would always be "daddy's little girl." Time and distance apart wouldn't make a difference with that.

When I opened my eyes and knew that he was gone, I understood that it was time for me and Riku to act. I looked over my shoulder, but he was missing as well! Startled, I shifted my eyes to his bedroom door just in time to see him coming out, putting on a dark shirt over his muscular torso. _Okay. Gotta stay calm. Now's no time to get distracted by Riku's abs or let fear take over._ "What do we do, Riku?"

"This battle's going to be too big for us to fight," he said. "We need to recruit some of the CPS that's still loyal to your mom."

I nodded faintly. "They should be in the security room." It was a room downstairs where there were televisions set up and men were monitoring the cameras. It was also where you could call out to other members of the CPS on duty and ask for assistance.

"Stay close to me," Riku said lowly, grasping my hand as he started towards the exit. "We'll be walking in the dark."

_Right, so that they don't see us,_ I thought, mentally finishing off Riku's idea. "You know the castle well enough to be blind in the dark?" I asked softly. We had only been living here three months.

"I won't be blind," he said. He stopped by the door and peeked his head out into the hallway. The coast was clear. He led me out, still holding onto my hand as he walked ahead. "I can see normally in the Dark because of past experiences."

"Guess the Darkness was good for something after all," I said quietly, knowing that was what he was referring to. His time in the Realm of Darkness gave him abilities that he wouldn't have otherwise.

He only grunted, and the rest of the way, we walked in silence. We had to reach the security room without getting spotted by members of the coup, or they would sound the alarm and we'd have an army after us. How many people were a part of this, anyway?

Riku was much more stealthy than I was as we went through the dark halls. Not only were his footsteps absolutely silent, but he was able to duck both of us away before I even sensed that anybody was coming in our direction. Because of Riku's superb skill, we were able to make it to the security room.

I nearly spoke to the men with relief even before we walked into the room, but Riku wisely motioned for me to stay silent and let him peak inside first. Since I trusted him, I obeyed. He stepped forward and set a hand on the knob, cautiously turning it and then opening the door. I couldn't see past him at first to see the men in their chairs, but I could see the televisions were all static. The cameras were taken offline.

Daring to peak around Riku, I stepped closer to him and to the side. When I saw the room that was only lit by the TV screens, I nearly let out a scream.

The floor was covered with the CPS security men. They were dead.


	18. Chapter 18: Run!

Chapter Eighteen: Run!

"Okay, plan B," Riku said lowly. "We need to find your mom."

_Right_, I thought as I nodded. Riku motioned for me to stay silent, and he continued to grip my hand as he led me out of the shadows and into a main hallway again. Still the lights were off. The members of the coup who were trying to overthrow me and my Mom in the middle of the night were trying to do it quietly.

The coup just started within the past two hours. I assumed that their first movement was when they came into my room and nearly killed me. They shot at least two dozen arrows into my bed when they thought I was lying there. But they were wrong; my Dad snuck into my room and hid me away just before they came. Now, Riku and I were trying to find a way to stop them. But any of our allies were now dead. This was so freaky. How was this happening?

These people were after my mom and me; that was the whole point of a coup. So we needed to save her if we could. If they ambushed her like they did me and she was asleep…Hope was lost.

"HEY!"

"We've been spotted!" Riku hissed, tightening his grasp on my hand. "Run!"

"Run?" What good was that going to do? They were going to raise the alarm and then we'd have a lot of men on our tails. But at the same time, we were close to my mom's suite. We needed to get to her before anything else.

That was Riku's logic. Instead of explaining it to me, he continued grasping my hand as we ran down the hallway. Just a little bit further and we'd be with my mom. Or so we figured.

"Eep!" I squeaked just as Riku dragged me around a corner. Arrows shot down the hallway past us from the people who were pursuing us. They weren't just PERSUING; they were trying to kill us!

"Steph, I'm going to go ahead to your mom," Riku said. "Incapacitate them."

I nodded to Riku in silence as I summoned my bow and arrow to my hands. After a moment, he ran down the hall to the room at the end where my mother was residing. I wondered briefly why he didn't tell me to run ahead to my mom and he left me to face the danger, but then I assumed that he thought this was the safer option. If there were people in my mom's suite, it could turn dangerous quickly.

Three men came speeding around the corner, all of them with swords in their grasp instead of the bows they previously held.

"Stop!" I cried, placing an arrow in my weapon. I backed up slowly as I launched it at one of the men, the arrow hitting directly where I aimed it: his shin. The next, I aimed for his thigh, and for the last man, I managed to get one right in his kneecap. They weren't killshots, but they would stop the men from pursuing us. Were they the only ones, though? Probably not. That was why we needed to hurry, before anyone else came.

Leaving the men in the dust, I turned and ran down the hall. The door to my mom's suite was left open because Riku was already inside. I didn't hear any noise just a minute ago, so maybe no men were here yet. Running through the open door, I looked around for any sign of my mom or Riku. I didn't have to look long.

There, by the couches, both of them were standing. Unharmed. A breath of relief left my lips as I walked over, my bow hanging loosely in my hand from earlier. "Mom," I breathed, stopping by her and Riku. "You're okay."

"She's unharmed," a new voice said from the other side of the room, making me jump. Riku and I spun around to look, though Andrea already knew who was there. The person remained in the shadows, his tone dark just like his form. "For now."

"Who are you? Show yourself!" I cried, summoning an arrow and putting it in my bow as I aimed it at them. If they knew anything about my skill with a bow and arrow, they would be intimidated.

"There's no need for that," Riku said lowly to me, setting a hand on my shoulder. "I could never forget that scent. You know that, don't you…Gregory?"

Gregory hmphed, stepping out of the shadows and revealing himself. "I can't fool you, can I, Riku?" the man asked with some amusement. His words only got Riku's growl as a response.

My response, though was full of shock. "G-gregory? Why would you…I thought that you were…our friend," I squeaked. Was he really evil? Riku tried telling me for so long that he was still in Darkness, but I didn't believe him. But these days, Riku was right about a lot of things and I was wrong about so much more.

"You thought wrong, Princess," Gregory said simply. "I will explain it to you at the proper time. But for now, you are coming with me."

"She's not going anywhere with you," Riku growled defensively.

"You don't have much say in the matter," the evil man replied with a laugh. "There is no exit from this room. In the hall you just entered through, my men are waiting to escort you all to your prison cells."

_Prison cells? He's not going to just kill us_? I thought. As Riku shot off a smart remark, I heard my mother whispering in my ear. "Steph," Andrea whispered. "You need to run. You and Riku need to get out of here."

"What? What about you?" I whispered back, startled at what her implications were. We couldn't leave her behind! Not when there was so much danger here. Gregory was totally unpredictable now that he showed that he was on the other side.

"I'll be right behind you," she said lowly. "I'll hold them back until you and Riku are clear."

"Mom…"

"Hey, what are you two whispering about?" Gregory barked at us.

"Why should we tell you?" I shot back, noticing my mom elbow Riku and start whispering to him as I distracted Gregory. "I let you into my life before and you ended up betraying me! How could you, Gregory."

"I could do it quite easily," he responded apathetically. "There is a purpose behind everything that I do."

"You mean a selfish purpose," I spat in disgust as my mom whispered something to Riku about a window they could break out through.

"Details, details," Gregory said with a shrug. "Now, I **am **quite curious about all the whispering that's going on." Upon seeing my stunned expression, he laughed. "You could not have assumed that I was oblivious," he stated with amusement.

"You didn't need to be oblivious," Queen Andrea said. She took a step forward, giving me a small push so that I was back closer to Riku. "Just not able to hear." Her next words were directed towards me and Riku. "Now, run!"

Riku grabbed onto my arm immediately, pulling me in the right direction. "Run!"

That was all I needed to hear. I turned quickly and ran along with Riku, into my mother's bedroom. "There!" he cried, suddenly summoning his Keyblade to his grasp. He chucked it at the windows, the weapon spinning vertically as it crashed through the glass and completely shattered the window. But that was when I remembered…

"We're on the second story!" I cried.

"Doesn't matter. Jump!"

Riku released my hand as we both ran, jumping at the last minute to not only make it over the windowsill, but also to make it outside as quickly as possible. My mom could only hold off Gregory for so long; she had to hurry to make it out of there and escape with us.

I rolled when I hit the grassy ground, my landing not the smoothest. But neither was Riku's. He grunted roughly when he landed, though he quickly got up to his feet and encouraged me to do the same as I pushed myself off my hands and knees. "Get up!" he cried. "To the right!"

To the right? What was over there? This must have been what my mom was whispering to Riku about. I trusted her, just as I trusted him. We sprinted off to the right, dodging the shrubbery that was in this garden area just outside my mother's window. Nobody followed, not yet. But they would pretty soon. Gregory made no sense to me. First, he had his people shoot to kill us, but then he said he was taking us to prison cells! It made no sense…

Instead of focusing on the thoughts, I looked ahead to see what Riku saw: the stable and one, already saddled and ready for us to go. There was a man waiting by them as well, the same man who apparently saddled them for our escape. He was the last person that I would have expected to be bold and put his life on the line. "Hurry, hurry!" my tutor, Mr. Bottomsworth, cried, waving us towards him as we continued running.

Riku and I reached the horse at the same time, the silver-haired teen hoisting himself up on his horse easier because he was taller than I was. Regardless, as I took a few seconds to get up behind him, Mr. Bottomsworth spoke to us.

"They'll chase you into the woods," he said, keeping my horse calm as he held the reigns. "Your only hope is to outrun them and find a place to hide."

"What happens after that?" I inquired as I continued panting from the run.

"There is no way of knowing. Stay alive. That is all that you can focus on right now."

"Wait, what about my mom?"

"Steph…she's not coming," Riku said.

"What?" No! She promised that she was coming!

"There's no time for this. Go!" Mr. Bottomsworth cried, stepping back and hitting the rear end of the horse. That spurred on the creature immediately. Rearing back, I was forced to wrap my arms around Riku's torso tightly so that I didn't fall off.

The horse was back on its four feet within a few seconds as Riku tightened the reigns and turned him to run into the woods. But he wouldn't be the only one running.

"There they are!"

"Stop them!"

"Don't let them get away!"

Looking over my shoulder just as the horse entered the woods, I saw a ton of guards with automatic crossbows running through the courtyard after us. Some of them went to arrest my teacher, but most pursued us. And then behind them…I gasped, eyes wide. Soldiers on horses. We were in major trouble now.

"Hold on tight!" Riku ordered, the horse speeding up yet still managing to dodge a tree that was previously in our path. I did as he said, wrapping my arms more tightly around his waist as I pulled myself closer.

"They're right behind us, Riku!" I warned him.

"I know. We'll have to outrun them and find a safe place to hide. Yah!" he cried, the cry being directed at the horse as he forced him to speed up even more. But this was the fastest that we could go; we needed to be able to avoid the trees.

I kept my head low, as Riku occasionally had to duck in order to avoid low branches. But since I was shorter than he was, I was alright as long as he was. While he focused on the forest, I turned my head and examined our pursers. They weren't **right** on our tails, but they were within a dangerously close distance. "Riku," I started.

"Is there any way that you can knock them off our tail?" he panted.

I shook my head even if he couldn't see it. "If I let go of you at this pace, I'd fall off."

"Okay then," Riku said with a small nod. He didn't sound overly disappointed.

"You have a plan?"

"…Yeah."

I didn't like the tone behind that, but it didn't matter. I didn't even bother asking about it, sensing that Riku was focusing completely on the horse now. On the bright side, the other soldiers couldn't shoot us because of the fast pace and the swerving path that we were tacking. Heck, it wasn't even a real path. It was just whatever spaces were available between the many trees.

The first open area that we saw was a round area with no trees in our way. For some reason, Riku stopped in the center of it. "Let go," he ordered. Without hesitating, I did as he told me to do. He swung his leg and got off the horse, stumbling a step to catch his footing before he held out something for me. "Take the reins."

"Wait, what are you doing?" I asked as, again, I did as he told me to do.

"I'm sorry, Steph," he said. "I promised you wouldn't get captured, and I intend to keep that promise. You need to make it out of here."

"Riku! I can't-" I couldn't leave him behind! He…I loved him! And if I left him now, he could have been…killed.

"Yes you can. Trust me, I'll be okay. I'll find a way out of this situation." Then he, much like Mr. Bottomsworth, smacked the rear of the horse. The horse ran forward without my permission, running into the trees. Unable to help it, I looked over my shoulder to see Riku summon his Keyblade to his grasp. He was going to fight them…and lose.

Riku disappeared from my sight as I also disappeared from the sight of the soldiers who followed us. They were focused solely on Riku, who was taunting them and drawing their attention with harsh, biting words. I hoped this wasn't going to be a sacrifice of his life. I hoped he was only sacrificing his freedom temporarily.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Riku

"C'mon, come at me, I dare you!" Riku practically snarled, grasping his Keyblade tightly by his side as he shifted on his feet again. He was surrounded by soldiers on horses, who were pacing around him. If he managed to make it out of this situation somehow, it wouldn't be by hurting the horses; they didn't do anything wrong. It was these stupid soldiers who were serving Gregory.

"You hold a lot of confidence for somebody who is surrounded," a man on a horse said, amused. His face was hidden behind the helmet that he wore; all the soldiers wore helmets that shielded their faces from view. Even if he saw his face, he wouldn't recognize him. Riku was certain that he never met any of these soldiers before, because they reeked of Darkness.

"You hold a lot of confidence for somebody facing a Keyblade wielder," Riku responded lowly. That made the man fall silent. "I'm sure you've heard about what I've done to Gregory's brothers."

"Doesn't matter," the man said gruffly. "You're coming in with us. Period." He pulled out his crossbow and shot it off at Riku immediately, though the arrow didn't land.

"Dark shield!" he cried, lifting his free hand and cast the one-sided shield, turning it as another man shot off an arrow at him. While they were shooting, he sensed somebody with a sword sneaking up behind him. It was an attempt to knock him out quietly. "Not gonna happen!" he yelled, spinning around and swinging his Keyblade at him.

With a cry, the solder was knocked back so that he was kneeling by the horse he had been. But it didn't matter. The arrows were initially the diversion, but the soldier became the diversion as soon as Riku let his shield fall. An arrow pierced his back, to the right of the spine but not against the bone of his shoulder-blade. He grunted roughly, lifting a hand as he yanked the arrow out of his back. As soon as he held it in front of him, he realized that he had a problem.

The arrow had some of his blood on it, yes, but it was had a green liquid on it. He didn't know exactly what it was, but he felt himself get lightheaded immediately. And it wasn't because of the sight of blood; it was because the liquid that tipped the arrow was some kind of poison.

He stumbled a step, tightening his grip on his Keyblade as he looked around at the men who were simply gazing at him. They were waiting for him to fall unconscious. "Just…like that?" he managed, his voice weaker. The poison was taking effect quickly.

"Just like that, knight," the leader said simply, though his tone held amusement.

That ticked Riku off. He turned and through his blurring vision, he managed to channel some strength. He pulled back his Keyblade and threw it straight for the man's head.

It missed and pierced the tree behind him.

That was the last thing that Riku saw before his vision blacked out completely and he fell to the ground, his consciousness disappearing completely.

The _next _thing that Riku saw wasn't a pleasant sight at all. But before he saw that, he heard a voice calling to him. Gruff, firm. "Wake up," the voice ordered, sounding hazy to the teen as he fought the drug that knocked him unconscious in the first place. He furrowed his eyebrows, curling his hands into light fists while also feeling the pressure of shackles against his wrists. Where was he…?

"Hey," the male voice said again. At that moment, Riku felt a hand slap him across the face, hard. He grunted, panting a breath as he forced his tired eyes open. Blinking a few times, he didn't have much time to take in the surroundings of his prison cell. To his right, Queen Andrea was in a cell. She too had her hands in shackles tied to the wall, above her head.

And right in front of him, Gregory stood. "Gregory," Riku growled, pulling his arms to try and get off the wall. But the shackles were too tight around his wrists. At least he was able to stand on his own two feet, not just hanging from the wall. "Why didn't you have your men kill me? You know I'm going to cause you trouble…"

"On the contrary, Riku, I have a reason for keeping both of you alive," Gregory said with a small, devious smirk. "For now, anyway. You won't have purpose soon."

"What purpose do we have now?" Queen Andrea asked from her cell. Never before had Riku seen such viciousness in her eyes, the determination to break free from this prison. It was a shame she wasn't in the same cell as him; they may have been able to help each other if she was.

"It's simple, really," Gregory said. "Today, you two will be playing the role of the 'damsel-in-distress'. The Princess is too kindhearted to leave you two to rot in prison, so she will return on her own accord to 'save your lives'. So thank you both, for saving me the trouble of hunting her down myself."

Riku growled in fury, again pulling at his chains again. They only allowed him a few inches away from the wall, not close enough to actually hurt Gregory in any way. "She wouldn't fall for that," he declared lowly. "Steph's smarter than to come back without a plan and fall into your hands." Was Gregory seriously forgetting that Steph came up with a brilliant plan a few days ago to evade Riku, who was a great tracker? Gregory was underestimating her.

The villain only laughed. "Come now, Riku, you know that no plan of hers can save her from me," he stated. "I have an army on my side, and she only has two fools who managed to get themselves captured right away. Or should I say three?" he asked, shifting his gaze to the cell next to Queen Andrea's. That was when Riku first saw the other prisoner: Mr. Bottomsworth. "For such a wise man, Benjamin, you proved to be a very foolish teacher."

"Yes," Benjamin Bottomsworth agreed sadly. "You could say that I've been the biggest fool of them all. I had all the resources at my disposal to see if you were true, but I blindly believed that your heart had changed. And I led the Princess to believe the same." The tutor shifted his gaze to the Queen then, though Riku had a hard time seeing the movement because of the alignment of the cells. "Forgive me, Your Majesty."

"You won't be able to call her that much longer," Gregory said with a hmph, looking to the queen.

That simple sentence startled Riku. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Well, Keyblade wielder, before I answer that question, I have a few to ask you." He paused, eying Riku. "Have you seen many action films, with the villains revealing their evil plans to the heroes quite easily because he believes that he will win?"

"Y-yeah…?" What kind of a question was that?

"Well, I'm going to skip that part for now. Not because I am afraid of failing, but because I do not wish to repeat myself when the Princess arrives."

The only response that Riku, Andrea, and Benjamin could muster were growls.

"And anyway, I have another surprise for her, and you, at that time. Until then, you'll need to be patient. Hang tight." He smirked at his own joke before he turned, his guard opening Riku's prison cell and letting him walk out before letting it shut tightly. The lock clicked on the old style metal-barred cell as Gregory and the guard left the room completely. That, Riku figured, gave him an opportune time to ask the Queen some questions.

"Any idea what he's talking about?" he asked her.

"None," she responded, shaking her head. "I have no idea what surprise he has planned…"

Speaking of surprises, Riku thought of one that he faced earlier. "Your Majesty…" he started softly. "…Did you know that they tried to kill Steph in her sleep?"

Shockingly, she nodded this time. "After Terry left her room, he came to find me and warn me of the danger."

"T-Terry? Steph's Dad?" Riku asked in shock. He thought the man fled the scene, but apparently he didn't right away.

"Yeah. He tried to tell me so much in a short amount of time. That he was sorry for not coming sooner, and that he couldn't stay, but he wanted to remind me of something, and that that something could possibly save our lives today."

"What is it, Your Majesty?" Mr. Bottomsworth asked from his cell, as curious as Riku was. The words that Queen Andrea said after a few moments, though, left Riku absolutely perplexed and dumbfounded.

"He said…I used to be a Keyblade wielder."

*…*…*…*…*…*

Steph

I managed to escape the guards that were pursing me, by some kind of weird miracle. Hiding in the trees on the other side of the river, I managed to overhear a few conversations. Apparently those on horseback were called back to the castle, and now soldiers were wandering on foot to try and find me. They weren't crossing the river for some reason though. They believed that the guard they had set up earlier would have caught me if I crossed, but I didn't even **see **that guard. I must have gotten lucky and slipped by him.

Still, I had bigger problems now. I started walking deeper into the woods again, away from the castle as I held onto the reigns of my horse. I had to figure out what to do next. But what were my options? I **had** to go back to the castle; Riku, my mom, and probably Mr. Bottomsworth were there! If I didn't go back, Gregory would hurt them somehow.

"But I'm just one person," I groaned softly to myself. I didn't stand a chance against all the guards that Gregory would send at me the moment I was within sight.

Maybe I could have stolen a guard uniform and put it on and snuck back into the castle, but then I figured that wouldn't work either. Once one guard saw me, he would call the other guards.

But maybe I could recycle that idea! I suddenly had another one, and I knew that it was my only hope. Reaching into my pocket, I prayed that I had the item that I needed. "Ha!" I laughed softly in victory, stopping myself and the horse as I gazed at the item. It was the latest technology, or so Riku told me. He said that it allowed people to communicate to each other from different worlds, as long as the other person also had this special phone. And I knew that they did. Speed-dialing the only number that was available, I pulled the phone to my ear.

When the person on the other side picked up after the third ring, he voice on the other side of the line expressed surprise. "H-hello?"

"Sora," I breathed, relieved that he picked up. "I need your help."


	19. Chapter 19: Surprise

Chapter Nineteen: Surprise

Sora and I spoke briefly on the phone, but even without me telling him all the details of what was going on, he hurried to Cadia so that he could help me. Even if it was nighttime, I was able to tell him on the phone where I was going to be. He would have to be careful to enter the world unnoticed, though, or all the soldiers would come running over to our side of the river. But he told me not to worry; his Gummi Ship could become invisible when entering a world.

Pacing an area of the woods by an open meadow, I couldn't help but be nervous. I had a plan, but it was a risky one. Hopefully Sora was up for it.

After about twenty minutes of pacing and an hour after separating from Riku, I heard a soft noise. Turning towards the open area, I blinked in surprise at the Gummi ship that now sat there. I couldn't help but sigh with relief; Sora arrived without anyone noticing. The brunet came out of the ship, his eyes on me. He had seen me long before I saw him.

"Hey," he greeted, keeping his voice low as he approached me. "Are you okay? The guards didn't find you between now and when I called you last?"

"Nope," I said, answering the second question. "They still won't cross the river."

Sora hummed, nodding faintly. "But you said there's one pacing the area where you crossed over, right?"

"As far as I know, he's still there," I responded with a nod. "I haven't wandered anywhere close to the river; I didn't want to get caught with you on your way."

"So, what's your plan?" he asked, straightforward. He already knew the basics: Gregory turned evil and was throwing a coup to take me and my mom off the throne. And he already had Riku and my mom as captives. Now it was up to us to rescue them.

"Well, that area is probably only being patrolled by one guard, so he could easily be ambushed," I explained. "I was thinking that if we could steal his clothes, you could impersonate a guard who captured me and take me to the castle."

"So…I'm leading you right into Gregory's hands?" he asked uneasily. "I don't know if Riku could ever forgive me for doing that…"

"Focus, Sora," I said. "We don't have any other choice to get to Riku. At least if you take me in, I won't be alone. And plus, you can just have my shackles on loosely so that as soon as we find Riku and my mom, we can both fight and free them."

"Sounds like an easy enough plan," Sora said after a moment of thought, nodding. "I pretend to be a guard, take you prisoner, and get you into the castle. Then we fight back from the inside."

"Exactly."

"Okay. I'm gonna go strip the guard. No peeking," Sora said with a slight smirk, the teen turning around and walking through the woods to get closer to the river. His smile made a faint one appear on my face, despite the circumstances. I could see why Sora was so well liked by everyone; he could bring out a smile even in the worst situations.

While he did what he had to do, I worked my way a little closer to the river just so that I would be able to overhear the action and make sure that everything went okay. Hiding behind a tree, I heard Sora call out to the guard. "Hey, I found the Princess! Come quick!" Before the guard could even question who Sora was (he hadn't been able to see him because he was hiding in the shadows), the soldier crossed the river and found himself knocked unconscious by Sora.

It only took a few minutes for Sora to put on the guard's clothes, which weren't too big on him. "How do these guards manage to fight in these helmets?" he muttered, putting it on as it covered his whole face. Believing that he was fully dressed, I came out of the trees and saw that my assumption was correct. Still, he looked like a regular soldier in the clothes. Combat boots with dark blue pants tucked into them, a long-sleeved shirt with amber, maroon, and navy blue coloring, and the navy helmet with the visor that hid Sora's eyes and face from view.

"Doesn't matter," I reminded him. "You're not fighting right away. If you need to, just take off the helmet in battle."

"I might have to drop my pants too," Sora said, tightening the belt. "They're a little big."

I rolled my eyes (though it wasn't in disgust, but in seriousness). It was time for us to go. "…We need to make it believable that you fought me," I stated softly, summoning my sword to my grasp.

Sora gave me a confused look. "What do you mean?" When he saw me put the edge of my sword against my thigh, he gasped. "Steph!"

"Sh!" I hissed, that cry too loud for my tastes. "Keep it down. I'll just scratch myself up a little bit, that's all."

"Alright, I know earlier I said Riku was going to kill me, but now I mean it. Riku's gonna never let me live down letting you hurt yourself."

"What he doesn't know won't hurt him," I stated. I carefully ran the sharp sword over my jeans, cutting through the fabric but also scratching up my leg enough for a little bit of blood to surface.

"Riku's not completely oblivious; he's gonna figure it out. And when he does—Don't **do** that!" Sora scolded as I cut my forearm. A little too deeply, both for my tastes and his.

I winced, summoning my sword away. "You know as well as I do that I would have received much worse injuries if we were in an actual fight," I stated. "Now, come on, you gotta drag me back to the castle. I turned around, my hands behind my back. "Put on the cuffs loosely so that I'll be able to slip out of them as soon as we need to fight. And when we're walking in, stay close behind me so that nobody notices the cuffs."

"Okay," Sora finally agreed, stepping close behind me. He fooled around with his outfit before finding the cuffs that were attached to his belt. "You know, you're really starting to take after Riku," he said as he put the cuffs on me.

That was something I was surprised to hear. "Really?" I asked, unable to help myself. "How so?"

"You take charge pretty easily, and when you do, you're no nonsense. That's _just _like Riku."

"Hm," I hummed with a small smile. That was definitely a compliment. But Sora was dead on in saying I was taking after Riku; I was too timid and polite before to take control of a situation. Things were different now though; I learned how to be brave.

Sora and I made our way across the one passable area in the river, where the guard had originally been searching for me. Thankfully the water wasn't too deep; we were able to walk across and I didn't need my arms to swim or anything. The current also didn't knock off Sora's helmet in any way, so his face was hidden when he called out to the other soldiers. "I have the princess!" he called in a voice deeper than usual.

That brought all the soldiers running. No milkshakes were needed to bring them to this woodland yard. "You captured her on your own," a soldier said, clearly impressed.

"Maybe now I'll finally get a raise," Sora joked, which made the other soldiers laugh immediately. _Not bad, Sora,_ I thought, turning my head and glaring at him to also go along with the act. He was doing such a great job that I didn't want to ruin it.

"We'll all head back to the castle," the leader of the soldiers said once things calmed down. "There's no point standing around when our prizes are already caught. I'll let you deliver the bounty to Gregory yourself, soldier."

"Thank you, sir," Sora said deeply, nodding. Once he received a nod back, all of us started walking towards the castle. A bunch of the men sneered at me for getting captured so easily, but I didn't humor them with any responses. And whenever they threatened me physically, Sora told them to cool it. He said that Gregory wouldn't want damaged goods. Somehow, that got them to back off.

When we were in vicinity to the castle, the other soldiers left us to do other patrols. Though I was relieved beyond belief that they weren't coming with us, I couldn't show my emotions yet. The plan was going even better than I had hoped; I couldn't risk ruining it. Now, all we needed to do was get to the jail cells, release Riku and my mom, and then fight back. Once Gregory was defeated, his troops probably would collapse. That was what Mr. Bottomsworth taught me in class; he said that once a leader or king was defeated, his people were forced into automatic surrender.

_What do you know?_ I thought to myself. I actually learned something useful in a history class. Never thought history would have actually been useful to me, but it was now. Was there any other lesson I could use to my advantage? I couldn't think of anything as Sora led me through the mostly vacant halls. Thankfully, he was a good actor; he didn't act lost even if he was. I whispered directions to him whenever we were alone so that he wouldn't look like a fool.

"Gregory is waiting for you in the prison cells," a soldier told us as we headed in a different direction.

"What does he want?" I asked the soldier, bite in my tone that came naturally. That traitor…was waiting for us. He would pay for taking advantage of my naïve nature and making me trust him. I should have listened to Riku's warnings, because he was right on. Gregory wasn't on our side.

"I'll let him speak for himself," the soldier responded with a crooked smile. "Now, get going."

Sora gave me a small push, just enough to make it look like I was struggling against him. Again, I was in awe of how Sora fit into his character so well. I wondered if he had experience with this in the past as a Keyblade wielder, but now wasn't the time to ask anyway.

We entered the dungeon area of the castle, this place looking fairly medieval. It was the stereotypical situation, with the cells all aligned on one side with the iron bars. At least lights were installed; this place wasn't totally primeval. But neither Sora nor I could focus on our surroundings. Gregory was standing in front of the cells that held Riku, my mom, and my tutor.

"So, you've captured her," Gregory said to Sora, nodding faintly to regard him as Riku gasped my name. "Well done. You may release her now."

Sora, though he didn't want to step away from me, had no choice but to do as Gregory said. If he didn't, his cover would have been blown and the plan would have collapsed. There was another soldier in the room, after all, and if we fought now, that soldier would sound the alarm and call the whole army. We needed to take down Gregory when he was alone.

"So, princess," Gregory started, stepping closer to me so that he was directly in front of me. He leaned his head down, right in my face. "Tell me, did you have fun running away?"

"Let my friends go," I said lowly, my eyes locked on his as I ignored his question.

"Sad you feel that way," he said as he pulled back slightly. "But in case you haven't noticed, you're not in a place to bargain. You yourself are in chains. Now, you have no choice but to listen to what I have to say."

"I'm listening," I responded harshly, glaring at him.

"Great, glad to hear it," Gregory said with a hmph. "I have a surprise for you, and I think it's to die for."

_A pun about death?_ I thought as the man backed away, his sword appearing in his grasp. _Great. That means he's going to kill me right away. _I eyed his sword cautiously, as did Sora. We may have had to start the fight earlier than expected…

But instead of lunging at me with his sword, something totally unexpected happened. A portal appeared next to him and an old friend stepped out. An old friend, and the person who put on a charade my whole life to keep me content.

"Isabella," I gasped, seeing her wicked smile. What was she doing here?

"Hello, daughter," the witch greeted.

"What are you doing here?" Riku hissed from his cell, gripping the bars tightly as if that brought him closer to the situation.

"So, this is what's been going on," Mr. Bottomsworth realized aloud, speaking to Gregory. "You're still in service to her."

"On the contrary, old man…" Gregory said, a positively evil smirk appearing on his lips. Standing behind the witch, he grasped his sword more tightly before he plunged it forward, into her back.

"**MOM**!" I screamed in horror, though I knew she wasn't my mother. But…But…Gregory just stabbed her in the back! I ran forward as she sank down to her knees, though the shackles remained on my wrists somehow. I sank down to my knees as well, my heart beating a hundred miles an hour as I gazed at her purple eyes with watery blues. "Mom…"

Her eyes found mine, and through the pain, there was also desperation. And sorrow. She opened her mouth to speak her final words, but nothing but croaking came out. The wound was too deadly. Isabella fell down on her face, starting to fade away into darkness as I watched in horror. I wished her dead before, but now, seeing it happen…I didn't know how to react.

"I owe no allegiance to that witch," Gregory said, continuing what he was saying before as if I wasn't on the ground a few feet in front of him by my mom's fading remains. "Once, I did, but I was the one who freed her from the Realm Between as soon as I discovered a way to get there. I can thank Princess Stephanie for showing me that when she believed she was alone and went to kill Isabella.

"Monster," I whispered. How could he just do that? How could he just stab her in the back! They were once allies!

"The witch always wanted power for herself," Gregory continued. "I gave her the chance to torment you, Princess, in hopes that she could crush your spirit, but you've proven to be a more worthy adversary than expected. Still, Light stands no chance against the Darkness and its shadows."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"It means that now, I'll have to follow through with the plan I've been formulating for years to get what I want."

"Years?" Queen Andrea inquired. "Your brother was just taken off the throne less than half a year ago!"

"Yes, Olaf was killed by the Keyblade wielders," Gregory acknowledged. "And Tristan fell by my hand."

"Even then, you were scum," Riku said lowly. "You killed your own brother to ensure that you would be trusted by the royal family!"

Gregory finally looked over at Riku, his dark eyes showing no emotion. "You shouldn't sound so surprised, Keyblade wielder," he stated. "You're the one who suspected me from the beginning. But nobody would listen, would they? Not even your girlfriend."

Riku growled, tightening his grip on the bars in front of him. "What are you going to do?"

"It's simple, really," he said. "I'm going to seize power again, but I won't be doing it alone." He shifted his gaze to me, making my eyes widen. What did he have in store for me now? "But first, another surprise. Stephanie, did you know that even without my brother seizing the throne, we were next in line for it?"

I didn't know that. Gregory's family was next in line for the throne after my mom? "H-how is that possible?" We weren't related…

"The politics of this world state that if the king or queen from your line is overthrown, then the most powerful leader of another people group will become ruler," Gregory explained. "I was always the leader of my people, the Tylinians, but because of his age, Olaf became king. He had power for a little while, but now it's my turn."

"…What does this have to do with me?" I asked hesitantly.

"Not many would be willing to see the politics and agree that I am next in line for the throne because of my brother's harsh rule. So, you shall be queen, Stephanie. If only for a day."

"Just spit it out and say things in a way we can all understand, Gregory," Riku spat from his cell.

"As you wish," he said with a smirk. "We'll put on a façade for the people. Out of the burning love in your heart, Stephanie, you will marry my nephew, Nathaniel."

"Nathaniel?" I gasped. He was in on this too?

"As soon as you are wed, you will become the next queen. That's also a part of politics that wasn't taught to you in class, was it?" he asked with an arched brow. But he was right; I didn't learn any of this. Why didn't Mr. Bottomsworth teach this to me?

"Forgive me, Your Majesty," my tutor said to me from his cell. "I did not think becoming a queen was in the near future for you, so I left out matters of politics such as this."

"You worked into my hand perfectly, Benjamin Bottomsworth, even without conspiring with me," Gregory said with a smirk. "So thank you, for making my job that much easier. Now there is another matter that must be taken care of: the wedding. You will be escorted to your chambers right away and the wedding will take place within the next hour. If I deem you useful, you will live through the night. But if you pass, then it is just as well. My nephew will already have the throne by being married to you."

"You're heartless," I spat, rising to my feet while keeping my hands behind me. _Sora…We need to do this, whether the other guard is in here or not. We don't have a choice anymore. _

"There's one other thing that needs to be taken care of," he said as he chose to ignore me again. He motioned with his head to the soldier standing behind Sora. I automatically turned around and looked, my eyes widening when the soldier suddenly yanked off Sora's helmet with one swift movement and also punched him in the stomach.

"Sora?" Riku gasped softly to himself. My eyes, however, were filled with more panic as Sora was doubled over. Was he okay?

"Throw him in the cell," Gregory ordered the soldier, who Sora was struggling with as he tried to catch his breath.

"You've known from the start?" I cried, eyes wide on Sora and the soldier as the brunet lifted a hand to slug him. However, that left me distracted. I felt Gregory grab onto my cuffs from behind, making me gasp. Now I was going to be bound for real! This wasn't a part of the plan…

"Of course," he responded without any hesitation. Much to my shock, he undid the shackles and freed me from their entrapment instead. "I knew that you would scheme something up, Princess. By now, I know the way that you think."

"So that's it, then?" I snapped, eyebrows furrowed as I turned my head to look at him. "We were never truly friends?"

"Look who's finally starting to catch on," Gregory said with a smirk, grabbing onto my arms and pulling them more tightly behind my back. I couldn't help but gasp, squeezing my eyes shut as one of his hands was on the cut I gave myself.

"Gregory, let her go!" Riku cried from his cell. The door to his cell was opened as Sora was shoved into him, the two of them stumbling back a few steps as the door was shut again.

"You people don't understand, do you? I've won. Accept it. There is no coming back from this defeat. Now, be good prisoners and stay here while we conduct the wedding. I'll be back to kill you whenever I feel it would please me the most."

On that note, Gregory led me out of the cells and to my quarters, where preparations for my wedding to Nathaniel would begin.

When we entered my room, though, I was surprised to see somebody standing there. Nathaniel, my future groom. Gregory wordlessly left me alone with him, shutting the door behind him. I had a lot to say, to both of them. But now that I knew Gregory wasn't my friend, I knew Nathaniel wasn't either.

"What, are you sticking around to watch me get changed into a _wedding dress_?" I spat, taking a few steps closer to him.

"I wanted to talk to you, Steph," Nathaniel responded quietly, his tone not harsh. "Look, you need to know…This whole 'marriage' thing was my uncle's idea."

"But you're not stopping him," I stated.

"…I couldn't, even if I wanted to," the teen responded. "We don't have any choice but to go through with the wedding."

"You say it like it's no big deal!" I hissed. Marriage wasn't something to be taken lightly! Especially not when Nathaniel wasn't the one that I wanted to be wed to. Sure, he was a sweet guy, but he was only my friend before all this. Not anything more, despite how charming he was.

"We were already close to being best friends! Why can't we just get along? I mean, I think that you're…really sweet, and intelligent, and…"

"Are you seriously doing this right now?" I asked in disbelief. "Trying to win me over so that I don't fight against his marriage? That's not going to happen, no matter how badly you want it to!"

My determination made Nathaniel fall silent, finally. Whatever he was trying to pull here, it wasn't going to work. He couldn't have been genuine, because he knew how much Riku and I liked each other. In the past, he had been respectful of that, but now he was taking Riku out of the equation. That was a big mistake on his part.

Nathaniel took a few steps forward, stopping right in front of me as his eyes danced over my face. At first I thought he was going to kiss me, but when he lifted his hand, I knew what was coming.

He slapped me, hard enough for me to turn my face to the side. I gasped for a breath, keeping my eyes shut as tears appeared.

"I was hoping that you would see that this is what's best for you, but you're too stubborn," Nathaniel scolded. "You want the truth? I'll give it to you. I always liked you, but never thought you were fit to rule because you didn't grow up here like I did. I believed I would be a better ruler. But I thought we could get the best of both worlds by getting married and both ruling. You're foolish for not thinking the same. Now, I'm going to make your life a living Hell, if you're allowed to live. And though you may not understand it, I will do what's best for Cadia. Not Tebros, the world my father ruled. I sincerely care for my people and will rule them justly. But you'll pay for your foolishness."

I opened my moist eyes and looked at him after his rant was done, anger in my eyes. "You're the one who's foolish, thinking I'd settle for anything less than what I know I want out of life."

He lifted his hand again as if to slap me, and this time, I braced for it. But it didn't come. Slowly, he lowered his hand and let his anger dissolve.

Instead of speaking to me any further, he turned and walked to the door. He set a hand on the handle and turned to look at me, speaking only two sentences in a cold tone that sounded much like Gregory's.

"Get ready," he said. "We have a wedding to do."


	20. Chapter 20: Shattered Reality

Chapter Twenty: Shattered Reality

Riku

Riku paced his jail cell while Sora was calmer, his friend just leaning against the back wall with his arms over his chest. At least ten minutes passed since Gregory left with Steph; ten agonizing minutes. He imagined that she was getting ready for the wedding to Nathaniel, Gregory's nephew. But if things worked out the way Riku imagined they would, he believed that Steph wouldn't live very long. As soon as the people accepted that Nathaniel was a legitimate king, Steph would be out of the picture.

But Riku and his friends…they'd be out much sooner than that. Gregory was only keeping them alive so that Steph wouldn't ruin the wedding. As long as their lives were at stake, she wouldn't do anything reckless. And that was what scared him. Steph could **not **marry Nathaniel.

"Er, Riku?" Sora asked from his spot as the silver-haired teen continued pacing.

"What is it, Sora?"

"I guess now would be a good time to tell you that I snatched the cell keys off the guard before he threw me in."

Riku stopped pacing immediately, his aqua eyes growing as he looked over at his best friend. "…Yeah, that would have been good to know about ten minutes ago," Riku agreed, his expression fading from shocked to aggravated. Why didn't Sora tell him that sooner?

"Sorry," Sora said with a sheepish smile, pulling out the keys from behind his back. "I figured it would be good to wait till we were sure the guards were away."

At that, Riku started smirking. "Look at you, actually thinking ahead instead of jumping into something impulsively," he complimented. Sora must have matured in the time that Riku was away, at least in battle tactics.

"Thanks, I think."

"Now, if you don't mind, I'll take those keys from you," Riku said, walking to Sora and taking the keys out of his grasp. _No more messing around. It's time to bust out of here._ When he was at the front of the bars, he managed to jiggle the key into the lock. After a little bit of turning, the door clicked and opened softly.

Sighing a breath of relief, Riku opened the door and walked out. He couldn't help but look around to see if there was a guard rushing in to see that he escaped, but nobody came. The coast was clear. Riku opened the cell next to his and let Queen Andrea out before he moved onto Mr. Bottomsworth's cell. As soon as they were free, he looked around at his friends. It was the four of them against any guards that stood in their way.

Did they even have a chance against the army Gregory would send against them? That hopeless thought left Riku's mind as he focused instead on his determination to save Steph. It didn't matter what happened, just as long as they tried. Steph was in trouble, and she needed to be saved.

"C'mon," he said after a few moments. "We've got a wedding to crash."

*…*…*…*…*…*

Steph

_This isn't how my wedding day was supposed to be, _I thought to myself, tears flooding my eyes as I gazed at myself in the mirror. I was already in the dress that was provided for me, which fit perfectly. Solid white dress, strapless with a sweetheart neckline. There was a white bow in the middle of my back, the belt separating the plain top from the bottom, which flowed outwards and had faint silver flower designs in it. It was an absolutely gorgeous dress. But this was all wrong.

Nathaniel wasn't somebody that I loved. I considered him to be a close friend before I knew his true intentions: he wanted to become king more than anything else, even if he had to be married to me. This was going to be terrible. And there was nothing that I could do, because my friends were being held in Gregory's jail cells. If I did anything, they'd get hurt. Now, I understood that Gregory probably wouldn't let them live no matter what I did. But I couldn't be the cause of their deaths. I just couldn't.

"Y-your Majesty?"

Wiping at the tears that leaked out of my eyes, I turned my head towards the door to see an old friend, one of my closest maidservants. "Susana," I said weakly. It had been a long, long time since I saw her. On formal occasions, she always did my hair for me. That must have been why she was here now.

"Forgive me, Princess," Susana said shyly, dipping her head in sadness as she walked into the room further and shut the door behind her. "But…I've been sent to do your hair for you, and to make sure that you're not delaying."

"I won't fight against you," I responded quietly, walking over to the seat in front of the mirror, careful as I sat down in my dress. "I know you don't have a choice any more than I do." She clearly didn't want to do this; I knew that she wasn't just putting on an act. She was too genuinely sorrowful right now.

Nodding faintly, the maidservant walked over and stood behind me. She ran her fingers through my straight brunet hair before looking into the mirror in front of us. That was where she saw my reflected face, which still had a few tearstains on it. "Oh, princess," she sighed sadly, running her fingers through my hair again. "I'm so sorry…"

"It's okay," I whispered, shaking my head faintly. It wasn't really okay, but what else was there to say? "Let's just do what we need to do, okay?"

Again, Susana nodded. "I'll need to just throw it back in a nice bun," she said, reaching for my hairbrush on the desk. "They're impatient. And then make-up too…"

"I can do that. …I know that if we don't do this quickly, you'll get punished." That was the last thing that I wanted for somebody that I considered to be a friend. I was doing this to protect some of my other friends who were in worse danger, but Susana wasn't safe too. If she ticked them off, they could do whatever they wanted with her.

Susana looked at my reflection with soft eyes, her green orbs showing both compassion and sorrow. "You would have made such a good queen on your own," she said softly. "You're very kind."

"And so are you," I responded quietly. As she started working on my hair, I was careful not to move my head as I put on eyeliner and mascara. That was all that I cared about right now. I wouldn't overdo it; I would put on just enough makeup for them not to scold me for trying to ruin this wedding.

Susana finished with the bun a minute or two later, also putting a tiara on the top of my head. There was no veil to hide my face; the tradition in Cadia was that the bride only wore a veil if she had a father walk her down the aisle. Obviously my father wasn't coming to this wedding. He couldn't for some reason. And because of that…hope was lost.

My friend wordlessly stepped away, allowing me to examine my hair for myself. It was pulled back like a normal bun, but with the mirror she handed me, I could see the back. She did fine braids for certain strands of the bun. It was gorgeous.

"I must go report that you're prepared," Susana said quietly, gazing at me one last time before she turned and exited the room.

And then I was alone again.

I carefully rose out of my seat, careful not to trip on my dress or shoes. What was I supposed to do with myself now? I was going to be wed to somebody I didn't even like, while the person I did like was in a jail cell. If I hadn't met him, he wouldn't have been in this mess right now. It would have saved him from so much trouble if he didn't get attached to me…

Groaning softly to myself, I lifted my hands to my face so that I wouldn't have to look in the mirror and see my sorrow. Riku was going to die, wasn't he? And even if I was saving him temporarily by not causing trouble, his death would still be because of me. I shouldn't have let him come to this world with me. I should have pushed him away…

"Girls as beautiful as you shouldn't be crying," a voice said gently.

I lifted my head out of my hands, looking at the door as I was intruded on yet again. But this was the absolute last person that I expected to see standing there. "Riku!" He was here? But how?

It didn't matter. I ran towards him, tripping over my dress slightly when I was right in front of him. Fortunately, his arms were there to catch me. He wrapped his strong arms around me as I clung to him, the tears flowing either from happiness or sorrow at the situation. But there was now reason to be sorrowful; we didn't need to go through with the wedding.

Riku smiled faintly, looking down at me as I buried my face in his shoulder. "And as beautiful as you look," he continued quietly. "I'm afraid that there's not going to be any wedding today."

"Ha," I laughed softly. I lifted a hand to my face, wiping at my tears before I looked back up at Riku. "Shockingly, that doesn't bother me too much." It wasn't like I wanted to get married in the first place.

"I figured it wouldn't," he responded, lifting a hand and wiping at the tears that I missed. All that I wanted to do was savor the warmth of his soft fingers against my face, but I knew now wasn't the time to get lovesick. There were other people in the room as well.

Looking over Riku's shoulder, I saw my mom, Sora, and Mr. Bottomsworth. But my mom's expression…I wasn't sure how to read it. She looked only half-surprised to see me and Riku intimate with each other. To think I always gave her the impression nothing was going on between me and Riku because I was supposed to marry royalty…well, we had bigger problems now.

"So, Sora, you have any other bright ideas?" Riku asked his friend, releasing me somewhat as he turned to look at his best friend. One arm stayed around my shoulders as we all shifted our gaze to the brunet.

"Um…kick Gregory's butt?" he said with a small shrug.

"Works for me. Let's get going." Riku released me completely then, though his fingertips briefly ran over my bare back. The touch nearly caused me to shiver, but looking at my mom made that desire go away. She wasn't in favor of this…was she?

"Um…it's gonna be a little hard for me to fight in a wedding dress," I stated, motioning down to my dress as I stated the obvious.

"There's no time to get changed though," Mr. Bottomsworth said. "We must move quickly and defeat Gregory."

"He's right," Riku agreed, looking back to me and looking me in the eye. Upon seeing my nervousness, he set his hands on my shoulders. "It'll be okay," he promised softly. "I'll protect you."

_But…the last time you protected me, you got captured for me. I don't want that to happen again; I should able to defend myself._ "Riku…"

"We cannot linger here any longer," Queen Andrea interrupted, her voice stoic. "Gregory and Nathaniel are waiting in the chapel; I'm certain of it.

"Okay. Let's go. I'll lead the way, Sora take the back of the pack."

"Okay," Sora said in response to Riku. And then we were off to our destination.

Stealth wasn't even necessary with rushing to the chapel. There were no guards in the hallways. Absolutely zero. What did this mean for us? Gregory didn't know that my friends escaped their cells, or else he would have had all his soldiers searching for them. But was Gregory throwing caution out the window now by not having any guards walking through the halls? It didn't make sense that he would let his plan just collapse like that. Something was wrong. I could feel it.

The doors to the chapel were shut, and inside, I knew there was more than just the pews and the altar. Gregory and Nathaniel were there. Riku glanced at me briefly, seeing my anxiety. But this time, there wasn't time for him to comfort me. He lifted his hand, counting down to when he would do his next action. He shoved the doors open when he reached zero, the young man rushing in with me and my other friends right behind him.

And what did we see?

Gregory, Nathaniel, and the priest were standing at the front, and all the pews were empty. There were no soldiers waiting for us in here, either. _What the heck? I thought it'd be a set-up or something…_

"I'm…surprised," Gregory confessed, taking a few steps away from the altar so that he was standing in the aisle between the old-style pew rows. "I hadn't expected a jail-break."

"You didn't expect a lot of things," Riku spat. "What, did you really think that we'd go down without a fight?"

"No…I just assumed that the fight wouldn't come right now. I believed you would fight when you were led to your deaths. ..Tell me, how did you escape your cells?"

"That's for us to know and for you to never find out," Sora said, summoning his Keyblade to his grasp.

Gregory only hmphed, folding his arms over his chest as he took a few steps closer. "What a pity," he said. "And here I thought we could have a wedding without catastrophic failure."

"Well, you thought wrong," Sora responded boldly, stepping up to be at the front of the group. He seemed ready for a fight, yet Riku didn't summon his Keyblade yet. I didn't summon either of my weapons yet either, unsure as to what was going to happen. "You can still surrender easily enough, though."

The villain laughed. "Why on earth would I do that? My soldiers are on their way right now to crush this resistance."

I grunted, eyes widening as my hands curled into fists. "That's why you've been talking to us," I realized aloud. "You were giving your soldiers time to get here…"

"While you are naïve, you clearly are intelligent," Gregory complimented. "That intelligence will make you a wonderful queen." As my eyes narrowed, he continued speaking. "Now, that rebellious nature of yours…That will need to change. The threatening of your friends will persuade you to be a good puppet, hm?"

"That's really cheap," Andrea said lowly.

"Do I look like I care?" Gregory responded with a shrug. The answer was obvious: he didn't care, just as long as his plans worked.

The door suddenly opened behind us with a bang, making all of us nearly jump out of our skin. "Ah, here are those soldiers now," the villain said with a smirk.

But the one person who walked through those doors was not a soldier. He was not an enemy, either.

_Dad._

Terry looked at my group of stunned friends before he looked back up at Gregory, who was equally stunned. "What, were you expecting somebody else?" he asked the man.

"…"

"Oh, you were expecting your soldiers?" Terry continued. "Sorry, but they won't be able to make it."

"What did you **do**?" Gregory asked lowly, rage starting to show in his voice.

"**I **didn't do anything. Unless you count recruiting a powerful sorcerer to cast a sleep spell on all your soldiers is something you'd hold me responsible for."

The door to the left of the altar opened suddenly, and in walked the sorcerer that Terry referred to: Merlin. And beside him was another friend.

"And I took the liberty of informing King Mickey of Disney Castle about your plan, since I'm sure whatever you're scheming went beyond this world."

"You…"

"Outsmarted you?"

"…Actually did something."

"I did," Terry confirmed. He walked forward, stepping between me and my mother as he set a hand on both of our shoulders. "I stood by the sidelines for too long. It's time that I protected my family, the same way that they've tried protecting me." He looked down at me, squeezing my shoulder. "And besides," he continued. "I'm not about to let my daughter get married for politics. When she marries, it'll be for love. And I'll be the one walking her down the aisle."

Gregory was silent for a few moments, arms still folded across his chest for a few moments before they went back down to his sides. "Oh, are you done?" he asked upon hearing nothing. "I wasn't sure you would ever stop blabbering on."

"Just making up for lost time," Terry said with a shrug. "I've got a lot to say."

"We all do," Andrea agreed. She lifted a hand to the on her shoulder, giving it a light squeeze in gentleness. "But before we can move on, we've got more business to attend to. Starting with you, Gregory."

"Oh, I'm petrified," he said sarcastically.

"You should be," Riku said in seriousness. He stepped further ahead of everyone, his Keyblade finally appearing in his grasp. "You just don't get it, do you Gregory? It's eight against two. Your plan failed."

"I won't accept defeat!" he roared, suddenly infuriated. My eyes widened automatically as Gregory shot off a ball of Darkness at Riku. I wanted to cast a shield around him instinctively, but he quickly lifted his Keyblade and deflected the orb. He whacked it away, the orb destroying some pews off to our left. With that clear threat, all of us summoned our weapons. I chose my bow and arrow, for obvious reasons. I couldn't fight very well in my dress.

But maybe I wouldn't have to fight at all. Riku and Sora both ran forward to fight Gregory, while my mom and dad ran to take on Nathaniel. That left only me and Mr. Bottomsworth. "…Do you know how to fight at all?" I asked him, turning my head to look at my tutor.

"I know some self-defense magic," he responded. "Unfortunately, that is the extent of my abilities."

"I don't know if you'll need to use them much anyway," I confessed, looking back at the fights and seeing my mom send Nathaniel flying into the altar. _Wow was that a good hit, _I thought in awe. But then my eyes darted to her weapon. "A Keyblade!" I gasped. She had one too?

"I'm just as stunned as you are, Your Majesty," Mr. Bottomsworth confessed.

_No kidding_, I thought to myself, cringing when I looked over at Riku's battle and saw him take a hit from Gregory. Sora was also knocked down, struggling to get up. He was taking too much time. Gregory saw that Sora was the more vulnerable of the two and he spun around, hurrying over to Sora while he prepared to stab him.

He didn't get the chance to do that. Instinct took over me completely as I lifted my bow and arrow and shot, my aim deathly accurate. The arrow hit Gregory's chest, right at his heart.

In total and utter shock, Gregory turned his head and looked at me. My eyes reflected the same shock, a thought crossing my mind immediately: _I just killed another human being. _Death took Gregory away, the man falling to the ground completely before he started fading away.

"Uncle!" Nathaniel cried, his voice echoing in my ear. I felt ill at the shout. _"Uncle". I didn't only kill a villain; I also killed somebody's only remaining family. _But I did it to save a life. Was that…okay?

"Your Majesty," Mr. Bottomsworth voice said In my ear, his hand gently shaking me to try and snap me out of my shock. "You need to sit down."

_No,_ I thought in silence, shaking my head as I watched Nathaniel run over to the fading body. The fight was over now, and so was Gregory's life. My feet carried me forward as my bow loosely hung in my hand, and I stopped by Gregory and Nathaniel as everyone else did the same.

No words were spoken, because there was nothing to say. Though Gregory's cruelty was real, so was Nathaniel's grief. I didn't believe that Nathaniel was so evil, not nearly as evil as his family. He just wanted to rule his home world to do what was best for them, even if he had to get there following a dark path. He believed the end would justify his means.

His eyes darted up to me suddenly, rage and grief in them. With a cry, he quickly rose to his feet and sent his sword towards my stomach in order to return what I just did to his uncle.

I didn't have time to respond, but somebody else did. Terry grabbed onto the back of Nathaniel's shirt and pulled him a step away so that his sword didn't also pierce me. But to protect me, Terry also dealt the final blow. His Keyblade pierced Nathaniel's back as he was yanked away from me, all the action taking place in a mere second. Nathaniel gasped, and then fell, fading away into darkness.

My wide eyes went up to my dad, and his eyes were slightly larger than normal as he looked back at me. He was startled by what nearly happened, but I was startled by what **did **happen. Nathaniel didn't deserve to die. He was misled. If his grief hadn't controlled him at that moment…if he hadn't threatened me, he could have survived this day.

"Steph, honey," my mom said, suddenly standing in front of me as her hands found my cheeks. "Look at me now, okay? Listen…There was nothing you could have done differently. This was how things unfolded."

_But…he didn't deserve it_, I thought blankly, looking back up at my mom's bright blue eyes. Seeing there was no getting through to me right now, my mom simply wrapped her arms around me, cradling my head with her hand as she rocked me a little bit. I knew I was in shock; I knew I wasn't thinking clearly and that my mom was right. There was nothing that could have been done differently.

I felt another pair of arms wrap around me, though the embrace wasn't just for me. My dad stood to the side and had his arms wrapped around both me and Andrea, his head ducked a little bit to sit atop mine in a way to comfort me. And it worked; my family was back together again, for the first time in over ten years. All I could do now was hope that it stayed this way.

Never again did I want to go through all the agony separation caused.

*…*…*…*…*…*

I was left alone after the battle for a little while by my parents, who were speaking to Mr. Bottomsworth about everything that happened. He was a trusted advisor, after all. But my parents didn't go too far; they were in my suite still, sitting on the couches. But because the couches were in my bedroom and I wanted some privacy, I went into Riku's room and laid down on the bed. It was warm, even if he wasn't there at first.

Eventually he did come in and join me though, leaving Sora to speak to King Mickey and Merlin somewhere else in the castle. They were sticking around for some reason I didn't know. It hardly mattered; I had other things on my mind at the moment.

"Oh Steph," Riku sighed softly, sitting down on the edge of the bed and setting a hand on my back as I laid on my side and faced away from him. "…I'm sorry."

I nodded faintly against the pillow, rolling over carefully to face Riku. "Nothing different could have happened," I said quietly, repeating what my mom repeatedly told me earlier.

"You're right, it couldn't have," he agreed. "…You have great instinct, you know. You saved Sora from a very serious situation."

"I just…acted without thinking."

"Steph, sit up for a minute," Riku requested gently. I did as he said, also scooting over so that he could sit beside me instead of sitting on the edge. He did just that, moving over and sitting close to me as he asked a question. "Are you upset that you took a life, or upset about Nathaniel?"

"Hm," I laughed softly, though it wasn't a happy laugh. "All of the above. …But I'm really upset about Nathaniel." I turned my head, looking over at Riku with soft blue eyes. "He was so much like me, Riku. He was going through the same struggle."

"What do you mean?"

"He grew up in Cadia, and he wanted so desperately to be a good king to them, even if he had to go by his uncle's dark methods in order to get that position. And I was the same way with my dad; I took a dark path in trying to recover him to reach this happy ending with my family. …I could have turned out the same way he did so easily, Riku."

Riku nodded faintly, understanding. "I know what you mean," he said softly. "I've been through the same thing. I walked the path of Darkness a long time ago, but now I'm blessed with this life. I know things could have easily been different."

"It doesn't seem fair that we would get a chance to live better lives now and Nathaniel doesn't," I confessed, setting my head on Riku's shoulder. My eyes shut in sadness, moisture growing behind my eyelids again. "…I guess, my real question is…what are we supposed to do now?"

"We keep living," Riku responded softly, his head turned towards me as he gazed down at me. "Life goes on, even in the face of tragedy."

_Yeah, I guess so_, I silently agreed. Riku leaned his head down, giving me a kiss on the top of my brunette hair. His lips lingered for a few seconds before he pulled back. Though I didn't know it, somebody was standing in the door.

"Sorry for interrupting," a voice said from the doorway. I lifted my head off Riku's shoulder instantly, turning it to see that King Mickey was the one who spoke. "But all of us are gonna go to Master Yen Sid now, and we think you two should come."

"Master Yen Sid?" Riku questioned.

"Yeah," a new voice said. The source of the voice, Terry, stood behind King Mickey. "Master Yen Sid has a lot of answers to the questions you had a while ago, Steph. About your past, and about ours."

"Is now really the time to be looking into that?" I asked softly.

"Now's the perfect time to look into it," Terry responded gently. "The Kingdom is in Mr. Bottomsworth's capable hands for a while."

"…Why can't you just explain it to us?" Riku asked, though his voice wasn't harsh anymore. My dad earned his trust by now.

"Honestly, I hardly have the answers," my dad responded. "There's a lot more to this situation than I understand, but King Mickey says that Master Yen Sid knows everything."

The room was silent for a moment, but then I spoke. "Okay. Let's get going."

The two men in the doorway nodded before they walked away, letting me and Riku alone for a few moments. I got off the bed easily now that I was dressed in jeans and a sweater instead of the wedding dress. If we were going to be travelling, then it was definitely good I was dressed casually.

"This really doesn't make any sense," Riku mumbled, though it was loud enough for me to hear.

"What do you mean?"

"Master Yen Sid is involved in big world events, not the triflings of kingdoms and stuff like this," he responded, shaking his head as he looked at me. His next words sent a chill down my spine, nervousness flooding to my heart along with fear. "This has to be something much larger than we could ever imagine."

With that in mind, we travelled to Master Yen Sid's Tower, which was actually in Twilight Town. That was pretty weird; I had never known that such a place existed so close to my home town. Still, we didn't bother going through town to get there; we flew the ship right there and went to the top of the tower.

It was me, Riku, Sora, King Mickey, and my parents. Mr. Bottomsworth was taking care of Cadia and Merlin had to return to Radiant Garden to take care of some business. Apparently he wasn't needed here anyway. He wasn't such a large acting force in the wellness of all the worlds, though he did help where he could.

But my mind was getting off track now, probably so that I could avoid my nervous thoughts as we entered Master Yen Sid's room. He sat at his desk and looked at each of us with stern eyes as we entered in, and though I heard he was a good man, he looked awfully frightening. He hardly paid any attention to me, though, and the same went for Riku, Sora and King Mickey. The only two that he focused on were my parents, Andrea and Terry, as they stood right in front of the desk and the rest of us stood off to the side.

Master Yen Sid looked directly at them and spoke to them, and them alone.

"I was wondering when you would finally resurface, Terra and Master Aqua."

*…*…*…*…*…*

**Author's note: I know what you're thinking. "WHAT? WHAT?" Yeah, I thought so. xD That's where the story ends, with that cliffhanger that some of you will want to kill me for. But have no fear; there is ANOTHER story coming out to pick up where this one left off. It will be the third and final story connected to these characters. **

**But instead of posting a brand new story, I'm gonna continue it under this title. I lost followers last time I started a brand new story, so I won't make that mistake again. Until I start posting the new chapters though, this one will be marked as complete. As for when the new chapters are going to be up…I'm not entirely sure. I started working on it a while ago, but since then, I've also begun other projects that take priority. I promise I will do everything in my power to finish this though. **

**Until next time :)**

**Peanut**


	21. Darkness at Dawn Chapter One:Deception

**Author's note: So sorry this is coming late to you guys. It's been a crazy, crazy semester. Hopefully now I'll have some time to devote to this story again. As of now, I'm hoping to give you monthly updates. Stick around, it's gonna be a wild conclusion of the trilogy!**

**PS—This story ignores the most recent developments in the KH series with DDD because the story was conceptualized before that came out. **

Chapter One: Deception

"…It's hard to even know where to start," Master Yen Sid said, uncharacteristically not having all things planned out. Who would blame him, though? He just dropped a bombshell on us; my parents weren't King Terry and Queen Andrea. They were Terra and Master Aqua, whoever they were.

"Introductions would be best," Sora said, lifting a hand and running it over the back of his spiky head as a confused expression remained on his face. "We're all lost over here."

Not "all" of them were lost, but Sora was obviously referring to himself, Riku, and me. King Mickey was also stand with us, even if he wasn't clueless. He stepped forward, facing all of us as he spoke. "Terra and Master Aqua were the Keyblade wielders of the generation before you," he explained. "They fought the forces of Darkness about fourteen years ago, when the real Master Xehanort was around.

"Fourteen years ago? Sora was four then, and I was five," Riku said. He shifted his gaze to Terra, who was looking at him in return. Suddenly, something clicked in Riku's mind. "That was the time when I started getting really curious about the worlds, because I ran into two people who came from other worlds on the Islands…"

"Wait, Terra, you went there?" Andrea—or Aqua, asked her husband in confusion.

"Yeah, I did. I remember now…that was where I chose my successor."

"Riku was your chosen successor, Terra," Master Yen Sid intervened. My eyes widened at that, my gaze going back and forth between my father and Riku. Both of them seemed surprised, but slowly, recognition set in.

"I **knew **you looked familiar when I first saw you," Riku said after a few moments.

"I wasn't lying when I said I hadn't met you," Terra said. "I didn't remember my past with you then."

"This is all really confusing," I finally said. Though it probably wasn't my place to speak, I had to intervene. If they were going to talk about some past that involved both Riku and my father, then it would be best to get it done clearly. It wasn't good that I was feeling so lost in the first two minutes of the conversation.

"It would be best to start from the beginning, then," Master Yen Sid decided. "I shall explain everything, since Terra and Master Aqua's memories may still be fuzzy.

"Fourteen years ago, another Keyblade Master named Master Eraqus took three students under his wing. Aqua and Terra were the eldest of them. They competed in a test to become Keyblade Masters, though there was a possibility both of them could receive the title. Only Aqua received the Mark of Mastery due to Master Eraqus's judgment that nobody who wielded Darkness was fit to be a Keyblade Master.

"However, Terra did not willingly use the Darkness as an advantage. During the test, Master Xehanort was also there, and he stirred up Terra's Darkness so that he would fail the test. After the test, Master Xehanort vanished and the three Keyblade wielders all left their home world to search for him. Master Xehanort, though a series of events and manipulations on his part, revealed his plan: he would possess Terra's young, fit body so that he could achieve all his life's goals."

"And he did it," Terra mumbled bitterly, lifting a hand to his head as he looked down at the ground.

"He did possess Terra while his Darkness made him vulnerable, but a heart of Light took residence in Terra and allowed him to not be swallowed completely. That is, until Master Aqua found him possessed by Xehanort with little control."

"I fought him," Aqua recalled, her memories returning to her as well.

"You hoped it would free him, but during the fight, Xehanort tried unlocking his heart to force Terra to leave him. The only result was that he lost consciousness and sank into the Realm of Darkness. It was then you jumped in after him and saved Terra's body and sent it back to the Realm of Light so that he could survive. You sank deeper into the Realm of Darkness. You remained there for over ten years."

"But…I was there too, I think," Terra said, slowly lowering his hand as he looked back at Master Yen Sid.

The Master only nodded sternly. "That is correct. Master Aqua attempted to save you, but she only saved your body by sending you back to the Realm of Light. By the time you were in the Realm of Darkness, your heart was extracted by the Darkness while Xehanort's and Master Eraqus's remained in your body."

"We travelled the Realm of Darkness together for over ten years, trying to find a way out," Aqua filled in, her bright blue eyes wide as she looked at Terra. "And it was there that we fell in love and…" She shifted her gaze to me then. "…We had a child."

It was obvious that they were referring to me. "…I was born in the Realm of Darkness?" That was completely impossible. Wasn't it? First off, I grew up believing that I lived my whole life in Twilight Town. Less than six months ago, I was told that was a lie; I was really born in Cadia as a princess but lived in Twilight Town with a false mother for most of my life. Now I was being told another story? Would this one actually be the truth?

"That can't be possible," Riku said in my stead. "You said it yourselves; all of this took place fourteen years ago. Steph is eighteen."

"But…Terra and I have aged more than fourteen years too," Aqua said, looking around at everyone. "We're twenty years older than when we left the Realm of Light."

"This makes no sense," Sora mumbled.

"It does when you factor in everything, like where they were, and who did what."

"Where we were?" Terra repeated.

"Who did what?" Aqua inquired.

"What do you mean, Master Yen Sid?" King Mickey asked.

"For one thing, the flow of time is different in the Realm of Darkness," he explained. "One year here could be a year and a half there. But the flow of time has also been different from world to world. The time difference between worlds has accelerated in the past few years."

"Really?" Sora asked, his voice expressing confusion. I didn't blame him; I was confused too.

"Yes," Master Yen Sid confirmed. "There are two worlds in particular that have had time passing faster than the rest of the worlds: Twilight Town and Cadia." He focused his stern, serious eyes on Sora then. "Sora, how long was Riku away from the Islands in Cadia."

He thought about it briefly, lifting a hand to his chin. "…About four months," he decided.

Riku grunted. "I was in Cadia longer than that. It was closer to five and a half months."

"Thus you see my point," Master Yen Sid said gravely. "Time has sped up for those worlds, and though it's not a dramatic change, it's enough to account for the few years extra that Master Aqua, Terra, and Stephanie have aged."

"Why is the time flowing differently? Is that because of the person you referred to earlier?" Aqua asked.

The old Keyblade Master only nodded faintly, lowering his head as his eyes shut. Whoever this person was, it must have been serious. "Master Xehanort," he said after a few moments.

Everyone but me, King Mickey, and Master Yen Sid grunted at the name. Their reason was that this wasn't news to them, but I simply had no clue who Master Xehanort was. They just said he wanted to possess Terra's body; was that why they were freaking out. Riku's hand moved to grip my shoulder, his grip very tight. When I looked back and saw his expression, I felt myself become afraid. Whoever Master Xehanort was, he was bad news.

"I know this is a lot to take in, so I'll explain," King Mickey said, taking over where Master Yen Sid left off. "You guys know that Master Xehanort ended up possessing Terra's body while Terra and Aqua were both in the Realm of Darkness. Well, Master Xehanort lost his memories of his past life because of Eraqus's influence in his heart. So he lived his life as an apprentice under Ansem the Wise and studied hearts, the hearts of worlds, and the Darkness. Somewhere along the way, he lost his heart."

"And that's where Ansem, Seeker of Darkness, and Xemnas come in," Riku surmised.

"Right," the mouse agreed. "Whenever a person loses their heart, they turn into both a Nobody and a Heartless. But…There's somethin' else, too." He shifted his gaze to Master Yen Sid then, allowing him to pick up on the information session again.

The old man had his arms folded across his chest, serious as he spoke. "When a person's Heartless and Nobody are killed in that order, it allows their Somebody to return. And because you killed Xehanort's remnants in that order, the old Master Xehanort has returned. In fact, he's actually been back a few years now. Ever since Xemnas's defeat."

"What's he been doing all this time?" Sora asked in bewilderment.

"Manipulating Terra and Aqua, for one thing," King Mickey said as he looked at the couple. "The flow of those worlds wasn't always different; Master Xehanort influenced them to speed up time. I can also guarantee that he was the one to give you all false memories concerning your pasts so that you'd remain ignorant of him."

"But…why? What's he up to?"

"That, we do not know," Master Yen Sid said. "That's something for all of you to figure out. Xehanort must be found, and stopped. Whatever his plot is, he has been working on it for years. That makes it all the more deathly."

"And there's something else," Mickey added. I fought the urge to groan. My head was already spinning from all this, and it always seemed like there was something more that they needed to add. "…Master Xehanort isn't the only person back. When the Somebody returns, so do their Heartless and Nobody."

Riku's death grip on my shoulder tightened. "…Ansem's back."

"He is," King Mickey said, his voice full of sympathy for Riku. "And Xemnas as well."

"This is just great," Sora mumbled. "What are we supposed to do? Where do we even start?"

"Start by searching the worlds for leads on any form of Xehanort," Master Yen Sid decreed. "Do not travel alone and be on guard at all times. I have no doubt that now that you all know of his return, Master Xehanort will move into action."

The Keybladers in the room nodded, though I didn't do anything. Was Master Yen Sid's order directed at me too? I wasn't a Keyblade wielder, after all. I was the daughter of two Keyblade wielders…yet I didn't receive their power. I didn't know enough about Keyblades to be able to discern why that was, but now wasn't the time to bring up that question. Besides, I had a lot more questions that I would ask at the right time.

"Thanks for your help, Master Yen Sid," King Mickey said, bowing in respect. I came out of my thoughts quickly and noticed Riku's hand was gone from my shoulder as he, along with everyone else, also bowed. I joined in quickly, not because I was thankful for the words Master Yen Sid said, but because he was a wise man who deserved respect.

The Master only nodded to us, and I knew that was our cue to leave. King Mickey started out since he was the most comfortable with Master Yen Sid and this tower, my parents following as I trailed behind with Riku and Sora.

_This is all so freaky, _I thought as we walked down the stairs. _This man, Master Xehanort, manipulated my parents' lives, and mine, so that we would have no idea who he was. _Now, I just had absolutely no idea what the truth was. Did I grow up in Twilight Town like I remembered, or were my memories lies? How long did I live in the Realm of Darkness with my family? How did we escape? And how exactly did we slip into the roles Xehanort had placed for us?

And, a more general question: Would I ever be able to grasp the truth?

*…*…*…*…*…*

After the meeting, all of us but King Mickey went to Destiny Islands. Riku didn't take me aside at all like I half-expected him to do. I was silent after the talks, but then again, most people were. My parents—Aqua and Terra—went off on their own on the Gummi ship and spoke to each other about their past, or what they could recall of it. Riku and Sora only spoke briefly, saying that they would all go to the play Island and speak there about their strategy. And that Kairi would be a part of it.

There was no mention of me, and I wasn't sure whether to be glad or not. I wasn't sure if this was a fight I wanted to be a part of. But at the same time, did I really have a choice? What did I have left anymore? There was no life waiting for me. I was no princess in Cadia, and my life in Twilight Town was gone along with my "mother", Isabella. Isabella…for some reason, I couldn't get her off my mind. I watched her die, and despite the treachery she committed, I called her "Mom". I really did love her.

We were standing by the Papou tree as Riku and Sora spoke to Aqua, showing her a map of the worlds and explaining what state the worlds were in today. Though Kairi wasn't speaking up, she was a part of the conversation as well. I remained a few feet away, looking at the map but not taking in anything. I had too much on my mind for that.

The hands that suddenly appeared on my shoulders made me nearly jump out of my skin. But it was a gentle touch, so I didn't freak out _too _much. I turned my head and looked over my shoulder, seeing that it was my dad.

"Let's go for a walk," he said softly, though he didn't wait for a response. He gently turned my shoulders, as well as my body, as we started towards the bridge. I had no reason to protest it anyway; it wasn't like I had actually been paying attention to the conversation going on. And the way things were going, they probably wouldn't notice I was missing. It seemed like I was going back to being invisible again.

It wasn't until my dad and I made it to the other side of the Island that he spoke again. "Tell me everything that's on your mind," Terra said.

"Ha, where do I even start?" I asked weakly, glancing over at him as I stopped walking. We didn't bother going across the broken bridge; we stopped in the area right before it. We'd just stand and talk. "…Was it all a lie, Dad? What's true and what isn't?"

"Well," he started, a weak smile appearing on his lips. "You **are **our daughter, Steph." That much was comforting, but his expression became serious as he continued. "And your mom and I are Keyblade wielders. …her natural hair color is actually blue; have you noticed the roots before? She had just been dying it blonde for years."

"Dad…" I said, my voice cautious as I was afraid to step on his toes. "I just need the really important stuff right now. How long were we in the Realm of Darkness? Where did I actually grow up? Will I ever actually remember any of it?"

He sighed, though it wasn't because of offense. He was trying to figure out how to answer me. "We were in the Realm of Darkness for four years, from what I can recall. One day, a door of light just randomly appeared. We walked through it and…" He lifted a hand to his head, eyebrows furrowing as he glared down at the ground. "…I don't remember exactly how we shifted into our new lives. Within that year, though, we became the King and Queen of Cadia. When you were five, Isabella threw her coup and took you to Twilight Town. I remained there with you as her husband until she tried to kill me off a year later."

"So, I mostly remember the truth," I said, though it was partially a question. "We actually lived those lives, even if they were lies?"

"That's right," Terra confirmed with a nod. "Our lives may have been lies, but your memories aren't. Not this time." He stepped forward, gazing at the ocean while I gazed at his back. "The most dangerous lies are the ones that have a bit of truth mixed in with them. When you can't discern what's true and what isn't, you're bound to either throw out the whole thing as a lie or accept it all as truth. Steph…You need to learn not to settle for either solution. It will only lead you astray."

_Yeah, I'll try to do that, but…_ "What exactly is my role in this anymore? I'm not a Keyblade wielder, and I have no connection to this Xehanort guy."

"As much as I hate to say it…I think you're going to be dragged into this no matter what you decide your role to be."

"Then what's the point of even making a choice?" I asked in frustration. I was getting desperate now; I had to have at least a little control of the events in my life.

Terra looked over at me, his expression showing a bit of disbelief. "The point is that once you have your decision made, you have something to stand firm in. Stand up for something; that way you won't be deceived so easily."

"Your responses really make no sense, Dad," I mumbled. "I meant that if my path is already set, why even bother deciding whether I want to be a part of the conflict or not?"

"I know what you asked," he responded. "And I don't have an answer to that one. It's something that you'll have to discover for yourself."

A sigh left my lips at that, my shoulders slumping as I shook my head. Great. That was just one more thing I had to add to my growing list of things I needed to discover. I was only eighteen, but I felt the need to figure out all of life's questions right away. Life wasn't going to wait for me to patiently figure them out, or so it seemed. At the thought of my age, another question popped up. "This all started when I was seventeen," I said aloud, eyebrows furrowed as I looked towards the ocean. "That was when Olaf, Tristan, Gregory, and Isabella started seeking power. What role did they have in Xehanort's scheming?"

"My guess is that Master Xehanort didn't care much about them just as long as they wreaked havoc on the worlds," Dad thought. "And Isabella in particular…She must have known of Xehanort's existence. She was the first one to hint that you weren't a princess in Cadia."

"Huh?" I asked dumbly, not getting it.

"When you turned eighteen, you were supposed to receive certain powers," Terra explained. "And when you didn't get them, that led you to searching for me. Isabella told you to ask me because I was the one who was closest to realizing that there were no powers for you to receive. She actually really helped us regain ourselves, now that I think about it."

_She did,_ I thought as my heart leaped. I wasn't sure if it was leaping in joy or in sadness, though. I knew that everything she ever did was very calculated; telling me to search for my father to lead me to the truth must have been a part of the plan already. But she was so cruel to me as well…she tried to get me to sink into Darkness, didn't she? Or maybe, through those trials, she was trying to strengthen my Light in the only way that she could have.

Maybe…she truly did love me. At least a little.

"I'll leave you to your thoughts for a little while," he said after a minute or two of silence. He approached me and leaned his head down, giving me a gentle kiss on the top of my head before walking through the doorway to go back to the other side of the Island. Most likely, he wanted to go rejoin the others and figure out what their plan was. I was still extremely grateful that he pulled me aside and spoke to me for a while. It proved that no matter what the circumstances were, I would always be my father's daughter.

Once I was truly alone, I wasn't sure what to do with myself. Walking around was a good idea. Better than standing around, anyway. I started walking for the wooden bridge, gaze pointed downward as I watched my footing. I was watching, but not thinking. Just as I stepped onto the broken piece of the bridge, I recalled that a long time ago, Riku told me that the bridge was broken.

I only managed a squeak in surprise as the bridge broke, and because most of my weight had been on that piece, I went toppling down along with it. A rough grunt left my lips as I landed on the broken plank, my jeans also getting soaked with ocean water as I sat on my knees. "Ugh," I groaned, though it was mostly out of frustration. It was because of pain too, because obviously that hurt, but I had faced worse injuries.

I forced myself off my knees and onto my feet, my sneakers quickly filling up with water now that I was standing. _That's even better_, I thought sarcastically. I took a step forward, though my knees gave from underneath me. I fell down into the ocean again, this time catching myself with my hands as well. "Spoke too soon," I mumbled to myself. I was hurt worse than I thought. I wordlessly pushed myself off my hands and summoned my sword to my grasp. Skilled with magic by now, I had no problem focusing on my inner strength and casting a Cure spell on myself. The pain in my legs went away immediately.

Still, I didn't bother rising to my feet. I sat back on my legs and let the water stay over me. Now that I thought about it, the water was actually pretty soothing. It didn't matter if my jeans got super soaked or not; I still had clothes at Kairi's house from the time I lived here before. That must have been seven or eight months ago. It was so weird to think it all happened so long ago.

But the past wasn't something I could keep my eyes set on. There was a new threat now, and he wouldn't wait for anyone. Xehanort manipulated me and my family, and he would do it again whenever he wanted to.

Master Xehanort was back, and he wouldn't show mercy.


	22. Chapter Two: Secrets

Chapter Two: Secrets

I remained sitting in the ocean on my knees on the backside of the play island, nothing but the soft ocean breeze and waves creating noise. After I fell through the broken bridge and healed myself, I just sat down in the water and stayed there. There really was no better place for me to go, really. I didn't even have a home anymore.

My identity was gone as well. I wasn't Steph, Princess of Cadia, and I wasn't Steph, the girl from Twilight Town who did well in school and had surprising battle skills. I was just Steph. Whoever she was.

"Steph!"

My eyes widened at the call, my head turning to look up at the bridge where it came from. But the person who called to me wasn't standing there anymore. Riku jumped down from the bridge and splashed into the water by me, kneeling down without caring about his own clothes. "What happened? You okay?"

"I'm fine," I assured him, seeing the worry and confusion in his aqua eyes. "I just forgot about the broken bridge, and once I was down here, I didn't feel like getting up. That's all."

"How long have you been sitting here?" Riku asked next, full of questions as always.

I shrugged. "A little while. I lost track of time."

"…Sorry."

"What are you sorry for?" I asked in confusion. He hadn't done anything wrong.

"For getting caught up in this Xehanort business. I wanted to talk to you as soon as that was done, but your dad beat me to it."

Oh, that. Again, I shrugged. "It's okay."

His eyes studied me, and after a few moments, I turned my head to look forward again. Riku's gaze was intense, just because he was so worked up over everything that was happening. "…Do you want to talk about it?" he asked after a moment.

"I dunno what there is to say," I responded softly. "I just got told that my life is a lie, again. I don't know where I'm supposed to go, or what I'm supposed to do now…"

"That's not something you go through only with your situation," Riku stated. He lifted a hand, setting it on my cheek as he gently turned my face towards him again. "It's something everyone struggles with. Figuring out what they're meant to do with their lives, where they're supposed to be and what to do." His thumb stroked my cheek, his aqua eyes soft on me as he spoke only a few more words. "You're not alone, Steph."

A faint smile appeared on my lips at the words that were spoken to me. Thinking about it, Riku was right. Everyone struggled with the type of general questions I was asking. I would still have to find a place to live, but at least I wasn't alone in trying to figure out what my destiny was. "Thanks," I said softly, lifting a hand to Riku's on my face. I gently curled my fingers around it, wanting to hold onto him for a little while.

His grunt was the response to my gratitude, and after that, he didn't say anything. We were still sitting (or kneeling, in Riku's case) in the water, but it didn't matter too much.

After a half minute of silence, though, Riku spoke again. "There's something you should know."

"Hm?" I hummed in question.

"More details from my past," he said lowly. "I have a feeling a lot of it is going to resurface now that Xehanort and his remnants are back."

_You're going to tell me about your past?_ I thought in shock. Riku kept a really tight lid on that; all that I knew was that he had a past that he regret. And that he hurt Sora and Kairi in the past. The rest of the details were so vaguely given that I couldn't even recall them at that moment.

"I was fifteen when this world was swallowed by Darkness," Riku said as he looked ahead of us. "I actually was the one to cause it."

Well, I wasn't expecting that. "What?" I asked, looking over at him in shock. He didn't bother responding, only continuing.

"I had made a deal with a shady figure that if he gave me the ability to leave the Islands, then I'd lead him to the heart of the world. Later this man tried to use me again. The Darkness started consuming me out there, making me thirst for power. When I felt desperately weak, I accepted his offer to give me more power without hesitation. …He ended up possessing me."

"Who is this?" I whispered, feeling afraid. I never imagined Riku's past would have been that bad.

"Ansem, the Seeker of Darkness…Master Xehanort's Heartless who has come back to life again."

I gasped.

"I'm sure that he'll say some things to try and get under my skin whenever we meet him," Riku said without looking at me. "I want you to be prepared to hear the worst."

"Riku…"

"Whatever happens, be on your guard." He finally looked over at me, eyebrows furrowed as his gaze was deathly serious. "He'll try to get inside your head. He may even try using you to get to me…But I won't let him. I won't let that happen. I promise."

"…Okay," I said with a small nod, unsure what else to say. But if we were dealing with a villain that terrible…I couldn't help but feel afraid despite Riku's promise that nothing would happen.

Riku pushed himself up, offering both of his hands to me as he moved to stand in front of me. _Let's get out of the water, _his expression seemed to say.

I accepted both of his hands and rose to my feet, my eyes staying locked on his. There was something that he wasn't saying; I could just sense it. "What aren't you telling me?" I asked him gently. Was it something concerning his past?

Judging by his surprised expression, I figured that it wasn't anything like that. He shook his head, still grasping my hands. "Just that I should have sensed something was wrong with Cadia," he responded. "I mean, I sort of noticed something felt off one day, but I never could have suspected any of this…"

"What did you notice that didn't seem right?"

"Well…do you remember that one day where we went into town and you saw everything for the first time?"

Memories immediately came to the surface of my mind as I nodded. "Of course." How could I ever forget that day? My classes were cancelled, so Riku and I explored Cadia for the first time. It had been fun until I was ganged up on by some creeps and Riku dragged me back to the castle.

"Well, there were things that I noticed in Cadia from other worlds. Like the stuffed animals named Mushu and Rajah. And the girl with really, really long blonde hair, and the random frog…All of them are from other worlds. Well, Mushu and Rajah weren't stuffed animals in their original worlds, but you get what I'm saying. Xehanort recycled material from other worlds when creating the structure of Cadia."

"Wait a second," I said quickly, confused. "You're saying Master Xehanort didn't just dupe me and my family, but he also created things to be a certain way in that world?"

"Or he created the actual world and shipped people off to live there while wiping their memories so they wouldn't know anything was wrong."

"That's…terrible."

"That's Xehanort for you," Riku responded lowly. I had to nod faintly in agreement. From all that I heard, Xehanort sounded like a truly despicable man. This plan must have been set in motion a long time ago though, since my dad was certain the world existed twelve years ago. That was after Master Xehanort took my dad's body, but before he turned into a Heartless and Nobody. "…Anyway, we've come up with a plan of sorts to try and track him down. Your parents knew of another world that Sora and I never heard of that Master Xehanort lured them to before, so it would be best to start looking for him there."

"What world is it?" I asked out of curiosity.

"The Keyblade Graveyard." I shivered at the name, not at the coldness of my clothes. That name…It just seemed so ominous.

"We're all leaving right away."

"Even Kairi?"

"Even Kairi," Riku confirmed with a nod, though his eyes showed that he was wondering about another question. "You can either stay here or come along."

"I'll come." There was no guarantee that we'd find Master Xehanort at this world anyway. And besides, the last time I was alone on this world, I was kidnapped. I was probably safest by Riku's side, even if he was running into danger.

"I had a feeling you'd say that," Riku said softly, glancing away. He had probably been hoping that I'd stay away, but I had my reasons for coming along.

"Hey," I said gently, lifting my hand and setting it on his arm. "I'm coming along because I feel safe with you. I'll be fine, okay?"

"Okay," he said with a small nod, though he didn't seem convinced. He didn't get another chance to protest.

"The Keyblade Graveyard will have to wait," a new voice said from the bridge above us. Both Riku and I looked up, seeing Aqua standing there. Her expression showed fear, her skin paler than usual. Something was wrong. "Terra and I just remembered something. Come with us."

*…*…*…*…*…*

Castle Oblivion. That was what Riku called it. This world wasn't in a realm that I was used to. It stood on its own, at the end of a long path. It was eerie, even at a distance. But this was where my parents brought us all. And by "all", I meant me, my parents, Riku, Sora, and Kairi. Mom explained that this was originally her home world, but she transformed it into this castle in order to protect something important. She couldn't say what it was, but Terra knew what was waiting inside.

"We'll need to stay together," Aqua said lowly as we approached the castle. "Master Eraqus told me that anyone who enters this place is lost in oblivion."

"But…Sora and I both made it out of there alive," Riku said in confusion.

"You did?" Aqua immediately responded in worry, Sora asking a question at the same time.

"We did?" Sora asked, confused.

Riku nodded to both of them.

Aqua grunted. "Then we need to hurry. He may not be safe after all…" She took at a run while Terra took off right behind her. The move surprised all of us, since she was the one who just said we'd need to stick together.

Before I could run after her, I heard a rough grunt behind me. I turned around immediately, my blue eyes widening drastically when I saw Sora. He stood still now, hands grasping his head and digging into his hair. He was in pain.

"Sora?!" Kairi cried in worry. When Sora swayed on his feet, she wrapped her arms around his side to support him. One hand sat on his chest while the other was on the side opposite her. "Sora, what's wrong?"

There was no response though. Sora suddenly lost consciousness and Kairi had to hold all his weight. She and I gasped at the exact same time as she started losing her grip on him. Though we were stunned, Riku was quick to do what was necessary. He appeared on the other side of Sora and wrapped his arm around his taller shoulders as he said to Kairi: "I got him."

"Riku, what's happening?" Kairi asked shakily as she let go of her boyfriend.

"My guess? His heart reacted to Castle Oblivion."

"What happened here at Castle Oblivion?"

"It's a long story…" he said, shifting his gaze to the castle as my parents opened the large doors and ran through them.

Though I was interested in the story, I quickly figured out that if I didn't run after my parents now, I wouldn't be able to enter the castle and see whatever was hidden inside. "I'm going after my parents," I said. I didn't wait for a response. I started running towards the castle so that I could catch up to them, and by the silence of the people behind me, I figured that it was alright with the two of them that I was going. It didn't really matter what was okay with them anyway; I was already going.

"Wait for me!" I cried as I ran through the doors. I made it just in time; my parents had just been about to go through the doors that were at the end of the plain white room. They halted when they saw me, glancing at each other as if to say, _Should we let her come along. _"I'm not about to get left behind," I said as I closed the distance between me and them.

After a moment, Terra spoke. "Alright, stay close."

We worked our way through the castle, the path straightforward enough. Each doorway that we opened only led to a set of stairs that we had to climb up to be on the next floor. It wasn't until we reached the thirteenth floor that there were actually other rooms that we had to go into.

"It's here somewhere," Aqua breathed, standing in the middle of one of the plain white rooms as she looked around.

"What exactly is 'it'?" I finally asked, doubled over slightly because we just ran to get all the way up here.

Neither of my parents answered. With an exasperated sigh, I sank down to my knees to catch my breath. Why were they being so secretive about this? It didn't make sense. They knew that they could trust all of us. Though Riku and my dad didn't get along at first, they were alright now. Especially since Dad was the one who gave Riku his Keyblade in the first place.

Aqua touched a wall and a bright light emitted from a large section of the wall, fading away after a moment to reveal a doorway. "He's in there," she said breathily.

"Then let's go in," Terra said, stepping forward and grasping one of the handles. His wife nodded and grabbed the handle on the other door. Both of them opened their doors at the exact same time and looked into the room.

Aqua gasped.

Looking past her, I could see that there were three empty chairs in the room.

Empty.

"Ven's gone. Terra…" She looked over at him, eyes wide with worry.

_Who's Ven?_ I wanted to ask. But the silence was too tense for that.

"…We'll find him, Aqua," Terra said after a moment, wrapping his arm around her shoulder. "But not here. We need to get out of here and check on Riku and the others."

After a few moments, my mom nodded weakly in agreement. The two of them turned around and started walking towards me. Without waiting for them to catch up completely, I turned around and started walking the way that we came in through. Whoever Ven was, he wasn't here, and he was supposed to be.

"Ven's our best friend, like a little brother," Terra finally explained as we walked. "He lost his heart at the end of the last fight against Xehanort but his body was preserved. Aqua put his body in that room for safe-keeping."

"…Oh." That was all that I could think to say, but after a moment, another question came up. "Why didn't you just tell us that?"

"If Xehanort managed to keep an eye on us for the last eighteen years, then if we said anything specifically about Ven, he may have come searching for him," Aqua stated. "We didn't want to take any chances. "

"Oh," I said again, nodding. That made sense.

The rest of the way down the tall building, my parents spoke to each other. They were trying to figure out what happened to Ven, but they really had no idea. The best guess that they came up with was that Master Xehanort somehow found him and obtained him in order to lure Terra and Aqua to him.

Whether he had bait or not, though, Terra and Aqua were going to seek him. He had to realize that. He was responsible for the lives that we lived, the lies that we believed to be truth. For that crime, he would suffer dearly. I didn't want revenge, necessarily. I wanted justice, for me and for my family.

But mostly, I wanted hope for a future where we weren't being manipulated. That future wouldn't exist unless Master Xehanort was gone.

There was no doubt in my mind: Master Xehanort needed to die. The real question was, would I have the strength to end his life if that time came? Could I kill a human being not out of reflex like I did with Gregory, but make a conscious decision to end a life?

All these were questions that I kept to myself. I probably didn't have anything to worry about. This fight belonged to my parents because they fought Xehanort over ten years in the past. They'd be the ones to end it too.

We exited the castle and saw Riku, Sora, and Kairi sitting over to the side. Sora was conscious again and looking okay, though a little dazed.

"Everything okay over here?" Aqua asked as we approached them.

All of them rose to their feet and nodded, though Riku spoke since he was a natural leader. "Everything's fine," he said calmly, though Kairi still gazed at Sora with worry.

"What happened?" Terra inquired.

"Sora has some buried memories with this castle. Being near it caused him to pass out. He's alright."

"Sora?" Aqua asked, wanting to take his word for it.

"I'm okay," he said with a small nod.

"Okay then. Let's all head back to the ship. It's time to head to the Keyblade Graveyard."

My parents, the natural leaders in the situation, started forward without waiting. For some reason that made my heart sink. I grew up knowing my dad as Terry, and when I knew my mom, she was Andrea. And they were both normal…sort of. They were the same people now that they were my whole lives—that is, Andrea was always Aqua and Terry was always Terra. But I felt like I was losing my parents all the same.

_There's no place to run away from this feeling either,_ I thought blankly. No place at all.

While I was in my daze, I felt two arms wrap around my gently. When I blinked, I recognized the person who was in front of me, and had been for a few seconds before he hugged me. Riku.

He never was one to give hugs too quickly, but he hugged me totally randomly. The fact that he was so in tune with what I needed made tears surface in my eyes. I turned my face and let it hide in Riku's shoulder, my arms wrapping around his lower torso. "I don't know anything anymore," I murmured, certain that he was wondering what my deal was.

"Hang in there," he whispered.

"I don't even know how to do that anymore…"

"Yes you do," Riku said softly, gently pulling back from the embrace as his hands found my shoulders. He looked into my moist blue eyes, and with all sincerity, spoke again. "Stay by my side."

The words made my heart leap. I understood what he was saying in those simple words. As long as I stayed by his side, I'd weather the storm. But he would also travel the storm with me so that I wouldn't be alone. "Riku…"

"Trust in me," he requested, moving his hand to stroke a small strand of brunette hair out of my eyes. "I'll make sure you make it through this, and I'll be there at the end of it too. I'm not going anywhere."

"It's been a while since you said anything like that," I whispered without thought. For such a long time, we hadn't gotten along. But now…It was completely different. It was like Riku was a new person. Or rather, he was Riku, but at his best.

"I lost myself, for a long time," Riku responded softly, aqua eyes sad at the mention. "I lived in fear of losing everything, especially you. But I lost myself to that fear…Now I'm okay again, though. I won't let fear consume me."

"…Stay by my side."

He did a double take. "What?"

"Stay by my side," I repeated. "I won't let you lose yourself again to fear."

"Mm," Riku hummed with a small smile. His hand, which remained on my cheek after he brushed my hair away, moved a little further back so his fingers were in my hair as he gently pulled my face towards his. Though I knew what was coming, my heart still was racing a hundred miles an hour.

His eyes shut as mine did the same, his lips connecting with mine in a kiss. It had been a very long time since we actually kissed. Way too long. And even if we were doing it while standing in the middle of a path in this weird realm, it didn't matter. All that mattered at that moment was the two of us.

Both of us pulled back at the same time, though we stayed within a foot of each other. He gazed into my eyes and I gazed into his. Never had I wanted to say the words "I love you" so badly. But we never said it before, and I didn't want to bring it up now while we were in a place like this. Or a situation like this, for that matter. Even if we didn't say the words, though, I believed I saw it expressed in his eyes. Maybe he felt the same that I did.

"Hey lovebirds!" a voice called from a fair distance. Riku turned around and looked in that direction while I looked past him to see Sora standing at least twenty-five yards away. "You comin'?"

"Yeah, coming!" I called when Riku was silent. One of my hands moved to grasp Riku's before the two of us started walking.

"I'm gonna kill him for that," Riku mumbled after a few moments of silence. When I looked up at him, I was shocked to see that he was blushing. Riku blushing? That wasn't something I saw often, or ever.

"At least he's alright now," I said, squeezing Riku's hand. The brief silence that was his response worried me. Turning more serious, I looked back up at him. "He **is **okay, isn't he?"

"Yeah, he's good," Riku assured me with a nod. "I'm surprised though; he didn't regain memories or anything being close to this place; he just passed out. It's weird."

"What happened here?"

"Hmph," he hummed, smirking slightly in bitterness. "That's a story for another day."

"Okay then," I agreed. "Another day." I'd hold him to that, because I wanted to know more about the past with my friends. They were basically all I had left.

But even with how much I lost, I couldn't ignore how much I still had. My parents were still alive and caring, even if they were a little distant because of their focus on this mission. Perhaps even more important than my parents was Riku. He was my best friend, the person I could trust with absolutely anything and I know that I wasn't being a burden to him.

Someday I would find the courage to say "I love you." Someday soon.


	23. Chapter Three: Old Faces

Chapter Three: Old Faces

Sentimental thoughts quickly abandoned me when the six of us reached our new destination. I wasn't the only one who was horrified at the wasteland that was known as the Keyblade Graveyard. Only my parents had been here before; even Sora, Riku, and Kairi hadn't been here before. I knew I certainly hadn't. Or had I? My memories could have been altered by Xehanort, or something crazy like that. That was unlikely though since my dad said I had true memories but a fake identity.

Now wasn't the time to be sorting that out, anyway.

The reason we came to the Keyblade Graveyard was because this was the place that Master Xehanort lured Aqua, Terra, and Ven so many years ago for their final fight. As far as Aqua and Terra knew, this was the only world that held significance to the old Master. If he was going to be anywhere, then hopefully it was here. They couldn't run around from world to world blindly searching for him. That would be a waste of time.

The six of us stood in the middle of a crossroad, Keyblades split into four different, large groups around us. I had seen what they looked like from the sky; it was a square with four quadrants. Aqua said that there was a Keyblade War here a long time ago, but she didn't know anything about it.

_Whatever happened, it was devastating_, I thought sadly, gazing around as I stood next to Riku and Terra. Each of those Keyblades once had a Master, but now, that Master was dead. So many people lost their lives, and for what? What caused this destruction, this desolation?

"It's a pity."

We all gasped at the new voice, heads turning sharply behind us to see that we weren't alone. A single man was walking towards us, leaning forward a little as he walked with his hands clasped behind his back. He was bald, not frail, and intimidating even at a distance. His gold eyes were what threw me off the most.

"Xehanort," Aqua said lowly, stepping towards the front of the group along with Terra.

"That's _Master _Xehanort, Aqua," he corrected, stopping several yards away and holding his position. "Don't tell me you've forgotten your manners in the past twenty years."

"You're one to talk," Terra said with a grunt. "It's _Master _Aqua."

"Not to me," he responded without missing a beat. "I never declared her a Master. Though I did see the potential in you to declare you a Master…your loyalty to your Master of the Light was a hindrance. He is a much larger threat than you ever will be, Terra."

"What are you talking about?"

"You don't understand what happened, boy? Don't fret, I will remind you. I overtook your body after our final fight, but Aqua met me in Radiant Garden and forced me to take drastic action. I tried extracting your heart, but we sank into Darkness together, in your body.

"Aqua dived in to save you, but she could only save your body. She launched me back into the Realm of Light, safe. There was one problem, though. With Master Eraqus's death, his heart joined with this body as well. While you sank into the Darkness, he remained in the body to counter my heart's Darkness."

"So where is he?" Aqua cried.

"I honestly do not have an answer," Master Xehanort responded. "While in Terra's body—or rather, my young body, I lost my heart. I suppose that your Master's heart had no place to go but Kingdom Hearts when that happened."

"So…he's truly gone," Terra said lowly. He grunted, curling a hand into a fist by his side. He was awfully worked up over that fact, though I didn't completely understand why.

"No Master to save you this time," the Master said with the faintest smile. An evil smirk. I fought the urge to shiver, hearing the low growls of every person around me. "I lost my young body when I turned into a Heartless. You regained it when you returned to the Realm of Light. But now's the time when I'll take it back. And this time, I'll be able to use it to accomplish my main goal."

"Which is?" Riku inquired, voice tense.

Master Xehanort hmphed. "The X-blade."

_Never heard of it,_ I thought immediately, confused. Looking over at Riku and Sora, their expressions were also confused.

There was no time to focus on that though; the enraged voice of my mom disrupted my thoughts. "What did you do with Ven?!"

Ven? What did he have to do with this?

"Not a thing," Xehanort said. "In fact, I've been searching for him for a long time but he has vanished so that even I cannot find him. It's alright, though, I've found a new X-blade candidate."

His eyes narrowed so that he was looking at only one person in the group. Me.

Everyone noticed; it was obvious. "What?" Kairi hissed, finally speaking.

"A daughter of Terra and Aqua," he continued. "She has inherited a strong faith and dedication to the Light from her mother, but has also inherited the Dark tendencies of her father." My mouth fell open as his small smile grew. "I have taken the time to study my subject well."

The implications of that were huge. He had been studying me. Watching me. I knew that he manipulated my life along with my parents, but I thought they were the target. I never imagined that I would be his biggest focus.

"There's a flaw in your plan," I managed. "I don't wield a Keyblade."

His smile faltered.

"I assumed that you were your mother's successor," he said as his eyes danced over me. "And that you suppressed your ability to wield the Keyblade because you weren't being taught that you could wield it."

"We never gave her a Keyblade," Terra said, glancing back at me briefly before quickly shifting his gaze back to Xehanort. "We didn't want that life for her."

"Yet her destiny has attracted her to be surrounded by all these Keyblade wielders," Xehanort stated as his confident smile started returning. "It's no matter. Stephanie can be _my _successor." I gasped. "It'll further set in stone her connections to the Darkness."

Everyone was silent. Presumably, it was from shock and anger. But mine was caused by fear. Xehanort had his eyes set on **me**. Riku said a few weeks ago that I wasn't ready to fight a super villain, and now I believed he was correct. This wasn't a battle that I was ready to face.

"We won't let you get your hands on her," Sora finally said. His Keyblade appeared in his grasp as he further backed up that statement with a threat. Riku and Kairi also followed up and summoned theirs. I was the only one without a weapon in my hands, but only for a second. My sword faithfully appeared in my grasp as I kept my eyes on Xehanort.

"Some things just happen, boy. You cannot save everyone."

Sora grunted weakly, as if Xehanort's comment struck a nerve.

"Stephanie," he continued, speaking directly to me. "You're welcome to join me now and prevent the possible injury of your friends and family."

"As if we'd even consider that option," Riku spat for my sake.

"Then we'll fight over her," Xehanort said as he summoned his Keyblade to his grasp. My heart started racing even faster than before. The threat was even more clear now that he had a weapon in his hands. All I could do was hope that we were ready to face this battle.

But it became obvious that we wouldn't all be battling Master Xehanort. Darkness suddenly appeared on the ground surrounding us as Neoshadows arose from the slime , surrounding all of us.

_Only Heartless,_ I thought, nearly sighing in relief. Heartless, I could handle.

Everyone's thoughts seemed to coincide. Aqua and Terra, who were familiar with Master Xehanort's tactics, ran forward to face him. The four of us teens were left with facing the Neoshadows.

"Remember what I said, Steph," Riku said lowly, getting into his stance. "Stay with me."

"Mm," I hummed with a nod.

Staying with Riku was much easier said than done, though. Things got fairly chaotic right from the get-go. Neoshadows weren't the easiest Heartless to battle; they were skilled with slinking down into the ground and then rising up behind your back and slashing at you with their sharp claws. It was hard to choose a strategy to face them as well; I could try to use my bow and arrow, but then they would sink into the ground and sneak up on me and it would have been better to have my sword.

So, to keep a balance of distance-fighting and sword-to-claw combat, I kept using my sword for near attacks and magic for attacks that were further away. I managed to hit my stride and stand well on my own as my friends also found their groove.

As we all got comfortable, however, we also got more distant. Every once in a while, I saw Riku trying to get closer to me but getting blocked by Heartless. "I'm alright!" I would assure him every once in a while. Sora and Kairi were doing the same with each other, since they were separated as well.

_But what's the point of this? _I thought as I slashed through another Heartless. Xehanort was after me, yet he seemed content fighting my parents and having me distracted with the Heartless. It countered everything he said just a minute ago.

**BAM! **Something hard hit my head, and it wasn't the claw of a Heartless. I stumbled forward a few steps, looking over my shoulder to see who or what was responsible for striking me.

The Heartless left me alone as I faced my new enemy, a man that I had never seen before. He had three distinct spikes, one on the top of his head and the other two on the sides. His long silver hair was perfectly straight as it went down his back, much longer than my hair. And behind him was an intimidating Heartless that seemed to have more consciousness than any Shadow I had ever faced.

"Ansem!" Riku cried several yards away.

Ansem? The man who possessed him in the past?! My eyes widened as my gaze darted to Riku, seeing him standing amidst a large group of Neoshadows. He immediately overcame his shock of seeing his past demon and started swinging his Keyblade, trying desperately to get to me.

Though I knew nothing about Ansem's skills in battle, he looked intimidating enough with a body that was clearly in shape and yellow eyes that threatened to pierce my heart. My first instinct was to run away from him and to Riku. That was probably what Riku wanted anyway.

A hand grasped my neck before I could move away. Ansem was far too quick for me. I gasped in shock, immediately starting to struggle as Ansem lifted me off the ground. I had been in a position like this before, a long time ago with one of the men who tried to steal Cadia from my mom. It felt like a lifetime ago. And it really was, because those villains were nothing compared to the one in front of me.

"Ansem, let her go!" Sora cried, slashing through his own Heartless to try and help me.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw another figure appear and grasp the front of Sora's shirt. "What?!"

"You shall not interfere. We will go together." The man grunted and tossed Sora up in the air, also summoning vines to keep him occupied.

"Xemnas has impeccable timing, don't you agree?" Ansem asked me lowly, his voice showing some form of enjoyment.

"What do you want?" I gasped.

He chuckled. "Your allegiance."

"Not gonna happen."

"Pity. I suppose we'll have to proceed with our back-up plan, then."

"What?"

Ansem turned swiftly to the side, releasing my neck when he threw me. I collided with the dusty ground roughly, losing my grip on my sword when I rolled two times before stopping on my stomach. Now that I was finally able to breathe, I automatically lifted a hand and touched my neck with my fingers as I gasped for a breath.

"What's the back-up plan?" I dared to ask, coming across as braver than I felt. It couldn't be helped that I shrank back a little bit when Ansem started approaching me.

"You'll find out soon enough."

He stopped walking, not lifting a finger to try and harm me. It was then that I realized that he didn't need to. Sitting up with one hand on the ground supporting me, I fought the urge to shiver when that hand suddenly became frigidly cold. When I looked down to try and figure out why that was, I had to bite my tongue to hold back a scream.

I was sitting in a puddle of Darkness, and that hand was now being gripped by vines of Darkness. I tried yanking it out immediately, also attempting to move my legs to get me out of this mess. But they were already entangled as well.

"Riku!" I yelped in fright, looking past Ansem to see that Riku was nearly through the Heartless that were in his path.

Riku managed to break through just in time to see me sink into the Darkness and leave the battlefield. He was too late.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Cold. That was always what I seemed to sense whenever I was unconscious. The cold always attempted to suffocate me, and chill me to the core. Most times that coldness was only felt in my heart.

This time, the coldness was literal. The air was frigid, and though there was no wind, it was hard to imagine a cold more biting than this.

Shivering heavily, I started to get a grip on my surroundings. This wasn't a dream world; it was reality. I was curled up on the ground, huddled to try and conserve body heat as much as I could. This cold was something that I never felt before…Or maybe it was vaguely familiar. Despite the frigidness, I was able to think clearly enough to recognize where I was.

"The Realm of Darkness," I gasped, opening my eyes finally and receiving visual confirmation. All that I could see in front of me (other than my own breath) was blackness. I hadn't been to this area of nothingness before; I could sense that much. Just the vibe that this place had made me want to burst into tears. Such sorrow hung in the air. Loneliness. Desperation. It took away every happy thought I could have had, not that there was much to be happy about right now.

"You're intelligent."

There was no person connected to the voice that was heard all around me.

"It has been quite some time since you were in this Realm," he continued. "But you recognized it quickly."

"How am I here?" I asked, feeling dazed. "**Why **am I here?"

"You are here because I sent you here. The reason should be clear enough."

At that moment, I recognized the person who was speaking. "You're Ansem, Seeker of Darkness," I realized aloud.

"Yes," Ansem said evenly.

Slowly, I picked myself off the ground. The cold made me wrap my arms around my torso tightly. Instead of focusing on the shivers, though, I tried to focus on this conversation I was now holding with Riku's biggest enemy. "I don't get it. Why can't I see you?"

"You don't need to. There is only one thing that you need to do now."

"Which is?"

"Survive."

That wasn't the answer that I expected.

"You've been sent to the Realm of Darkness," Ansem continued. "A place that you cannot escape from on your own. That leaves you with only one option."

"Ask you for help," I finished for him.

"Once again, very intelligent deduction," he said, his chuckle surrounding me. "Yes, you will need to adopt my Darkness in order to escape."

"You seriously expect me to believe that?!" I hollered at the black sky. "There's no guarantee that you'd let me leave this place even if I did accept your help."

"Perhaps. But it is guaranteed that you will not leave this place without assistance. It's a risk that you'll have to take."

"As if! Didn't you hear me in the Realm of Light? I'm not helping you guys. My path is the path of Light."

"You would rather die in the path of Light than live in Darkness?"

I swallowed hard. I wanted to live, so badly, but…But I couldn't give into him. "I don't believe that the path I'm taking will lead to death," I said after a moment. I shut my eyes briefly, but then opened them as I gazed at the sky with more determination. "The Light can't have abandoned me…not now. It'll guide me out of here."

Instead of showing amusement at my faith in the Light, Ansem was growing annoyed. "You're so naïve," he growled.

"Maybe," I agreed. "But like you said, I'm also intelligent. I know the Light has saved me in the past. And I know the Darkness that you're offering only destroys. So I'll put my faith in the Light over your Darkness any day."

"We'll see how you feel after rotting away in this Realm for a while," Ansem said darkly.

Silence lingered in the air after that. I had nothing else to say, and apparently Ansem had given up with tempting me to accept his powers. Either he was still watching or he had left me entirely. No matter the case, I felt very alone.

To try and break through the loneliness, I started thinking about my past. Memories from this Realm flashed before my eyes. Memories of my father and mother finding a calm area and teaching me how to walk. My mom, teaching me to cover my eyes whenever Dad had to go fight Heartless. My dad, having his arms wrapped around me whenever I slept each night in order to keep me safe.

Tears started flowing. This wasn't the kind of childhood I imagined myself having. I was only living in the Realm of Darkness for maybe four years of my life, but those four years were the key of my development. It was the only time when I was raised by Aqua and Terra and not Andrea and Terry. It was the only time that the three of us were truly aware of our identities.

The air became even more frigid as the sad memories invaded my mind and sucked my confidence and security away. I curled up on the ground again, shivering as I attempted to become warm again. If I thought happier thoughts again…If I had confidence in myself, then the cold would fade.

I lingered for a long time before I realized that happy thoughts weren't going to get me out of this place. Even if I had the most optimistic thoughts in the world that took away the cold air, I wasn't going to magically get whisked away from this place. I needed to try and discover a way out of here, and I only had one idea of how to do that: Walking.

Picking myself up off the ground, I didn't even bother looking around. Everything was completely dark; there was no way that I could see which way was the right way to go. If there even was a right way to go. Walking had to be better than just being curled up on the ground.

So I started walking. I started thinking over everything that happened in my life. I had two parents that loved me very much. They'd fight for me and give up everything just to keep me safe and happy. My friends were the same way. One year ago, I didn't have Riku, Sora, and Kairi as my friends. They were some of my only friends now, except for one friend in Twilight Town. Out of the four friends I had, I considered one of them to be more valuable than all the others.

Riku. It was chance that we met. I was a cashier at a store in Twilight Town, where he frequently bought his potions. A lot happened after that, but in the end of it all, we became a couple. We had plenty of squabbles along the way, but we also had a lot of teasing, joking around, and affection. And love. Neither of us said we loved each other but it came across in our actions.

I needed to make it out of here, to tell him how much I loved him.

Time didn't flow normally to me. I just kept walking and walking, whether it was for an hour, ten minutes, or ten hours. I just walked until I couldn't go any further.

"Just a minute to rest," I breathed, my breath appearing in front of me. Sitting down on the ground, I tried to regain some energy. But then I laid down for the same reason. My eyes also shut. That was all that it took.

I lost consciousness.

Again, time seemed distorted. As did my atmosphere. As I started coming to again, the air didn't feel nearly as cold as it did before. It wasn't nearly as suffocating.

And then I noticed something else that was both startling and comforting: Somebody was carrying. And they were walking, so they were taking me somewhere. It wasn't Riku, that was for sure. They were too small for that.

"Who are you?" I mumbled_. And what are you carrying me for? Where am I, and why do I feel so weak?_

After a moment's pause, the person answered me.

"I'm Ventus."

***…*…*…*…*…***

**Author: Thanks for the reviews, guys! Affy, I picture Aqua with blue hair as well. :P Let's just assume that her blonde hair faded and Steph's too wrapped up in everything to note it. (:**

**See you guys in a month!**


	24. Chapter Four: Reunion

**Author's note: Guess I forgot to update last month. Sorry guys! **

Chapter Four: Reunion

"I'm Ventus."

The two simple words gave me a start. "The Ventus?" I managed, peeking my eyes open to try and see him but instead being blinded by sunlight. I winced and let my eyes fall shut again as the memories took over.

Just a few hours ago, my parents Aqua and Terra rushed to Castle Oblivion to check on their best friend Ventus, but he hadn't been there. Xehanort hadn't been able to track him down either, but here he was, just like that? Nobody found him; in fact, it was the opposite. He somehow managed to find me.

"The Ventus," he confirmed, still holding me bridal style as he walked. That was all he said.

"What the heck is going on?" I murmured, lifting a hand off my stomach to my head. The last thing I remember, I was in the Realm of Darkness. We had been battling Master Xehanort, Ansem, and Xemnas when Ansem sent me to that realm and deserted me there when I was too stubborn to accept his Darkness. I passed out there after being there for a while.

"We're in Twilight Town," Ventus explained. "I found you in the back alley."

"How did I get here?"

Ven's shoulders shrugged. "I dunno," he admitted. "I'm just glad that I found you. The Realm of Darkness is a scary place to be trapped."

"How…How did you know I was there?" The words were a bit slurred, my head pounding insanely. Weakness and the headache made me only want to pass out, but I couldn't give into that feeling. This was too important for me to miss out on.

"Long story short, I've been keeping track of Xehanort for a while. Aqua, too," he added. "Terra did a good job keeping himself hidden, though. So I know everything that has happened, what Xehanort wants with you, and who you are."

After hearing a lot of other crazy things lately, I didn't find it so hard to believe that Ventus knew me. "So, what now?" I asked. "Where are you taking me?"

Ven stopped walking. Sensing we were in the shadow of a building, I dared to peek my eyes open again to take a look at him. My blurry vision cleared as I saw the soft jaw and face that immediately reminded me of Sora. It was the same age—eighteen. But his blonde spikes weren't so large as Sora's and his hair was styled in another way.

His blue eyes, though, were what left me stunned. They were incredibly bright as he gazed down at me thoughtfully. "…I dunno," he finally confessed after a moment.

"My friends," I said suddenly, my blue eyes locking onto his. "We can go to them."

"I don't know where they are. I've only been keeping an eye out for you, since I had a hunch you would end up in the place you felt most at home."

There were so many implications to that. I felt most at home _here, _in Twilight Town? A place where I lived with a witch pretending to be my mom and verbally abusing me often? _But she may have been doing that for you own good, _a voice in my head told me_. She may have been testing you so you were strong enough to face this trial with Xehanort. _

Nevertheless, I didn't verbally respond or agree to this place feeling most like home. I don't think that I could have found my voice even if I wanted to; it suddenly felt as if I had no voice at all. And no will to try and seek it.

"Steph?"

All that I wanted was to sleep. Sleep was always a nice escape, even if I experienced nightmares. The nightmares couldn't get much worse than reality right now.

"Steph! What's wrong?"

I'd give into sleep.

"Steph! Steph, stay with me!"

The voice was too distant for me to feel worried about. It didn't even feel like that frantic voice was speaking to me.

Instead of staying, I left consciousness. Ventus realized at that moment where I needed to go.

*…*…*…*…*…*

Just like the awakening I had after coming out of the Realm of Darkness, I could tell that the air in this place was very different from the air of Twilight Town. There was a lot more Light in the air.

"I know this place," I mumbled to myself, certain I was alone. I lifted a hand to my forehead, my headache not nearly as severe as it had been earlier. Still, it took a moment for me to bravely open my eyes in case the pounding started again.

The light in the room was dim enough that it didn't stir up a headache, but bright enough that I could see that I was in a lightly-furnished bedroom. There was a dresser to the right, an end table to the left, and a bookcase across the bed with a reading chair beside it.

The room was obvious enough, but what world was this in?

I dared to push myself up. The drowsiness was the only thing that felt wrong with me; I no longer felt completely awful like I had when I woke up with Ven. Something big changed, but I didn't know what. That was why I needed to go and find out.

I made my way out of my room and found my answer as soon as I stepped into the familiar hallway. Maybe I wasn't in this hallway specifically, but all the hallways looked the same in this world.

Disney Castle.

_Ven brought me here,_ I quickly realized. _He was with me in Twilight Town. I don't even remember him bringing me here, or passing out in the first place._

I needed to find him; I needed to find answers.

Though my sense of direction was normally wrong, I went with my gut and walked down the hallway to the right. Even if I got lost, I was sure I'd run into somebody who could point me in the right direction soon enough.

But there was no need for that. As I turned into another hallway, I heard loud voices that I immediately recognized.

"Steph was brought in a little while ago," a voice said. That voice was obviously King Mickey's.

"Brought in?" Aqua repeated.

"She's here?!" Riku asked in amazement, his voice the loudest of all of them. "Where is she?"

King Mickey didn't even have to respond. The doorway to that room, which was a library, was open, so I stepped into it. In the room, I saw all of my friends. Aqua, Terra, Sora, Kairi, King Mickey, and Riku. None of them were looking at the door, though.

Tentatively, I cleared my throat.

That caught the attention of every person in the room.

"Steph!" Kairi cried, though her voice was a hoarse whisper and not a shout.

A few took a step closer to me, but it was Riku who quickly closed the several yards between us. His arms wrapped around my lower back as mine wrapped around his shoulders. Riku held onto me so firmly that he lifted me a few inches off the ground as he spun so his back was now to the door.

Though I partially expected to hear him whisper something in my ear, like "thank goodness you're back," he didn't. And he didn't need to. His actions spoke much more loudly than words could have. He had been so **scared **that I was gone. Now that I was in his arms, I realized just how scared I was to be apart from him. Everything was starting to sink in now that I finally had a moment to breathe.

"Steph," King Mickey's voice said from several yards away. I peeked my head out of Riku's shoulder, looking in that direction to show that I was listening. "You're okay now?"

"I think so," I responded, just loud enough for everyone to hear. "But…What exactly happened?"

"You were poisoned when you were in the Realm of Darkness," he explained gravely. "The Darkness got into your system. Fortunately, your friend knew that the pure Light of this world would heal that before it got to your heart."

"'Friend'?" Sora asked in question. "What friend could have brought her to another world?"

"The friend who is standing in the doorway behind Steph and Riku."

On cue, Riku and I released each other and turned to face the doorway. It became apparent then who King Mickey referred to immediately as all eyes landed on him.

"Ven?!" Aqua cried.

The blond smiled softly, lifting a finger and running it under his nose. "Hey guys," he greeted, happy but keeping his emotions contained because of the severity of the situation. "Long time, huh? You guys didn't age very gracefully."

"No kidding," Terra said, eyeing Ven with confusion. "But that's a story for another day. How are you…?"

"Awake?" he finished, receiving a grunt from Aqua in agreement. "I've been awake for a few years now." His gaze softened as he looked down at the ground. "After my fight with Vanitas inside my heart, my heart left my body and found somebody who kept me well-sheltered for about ten years." His eyes landed on Sora. "That person was Sora."

The brunet grunted in surprise.

"You don't remember, huh?" Ven asked with a small smile. "That's okay, you were pretty young. But I remained a part of your heart until you were fourteen and freed all the hearts within you to save Kairi. I returned to my body then, and, well-" He motioned to himself. "I've grown up in the past few years. I'm eighteen, same as Sora."

"Incredible," Aqua breathed. "That's why you weren't in Castle Oblivion. But how did you stay hidden from Xehanort? And why didn't you let us know you were alive till now?"

"I figured the longer I could stay unknown, the better. Xehanort was searching for me to recreate the X-blade, and I couldn't let that happen. Especially not when you guy didn't know who you were and wouldn't be there to back me up."

"You really thought this through, Ven," Terra said. Judging by his tone, he was clearly impressed.

Because of that tone, Ven couldn't the small smile that was forming on his face yet again. "I've grown wiser in the past few years," he said simply. "I didn't have a choice." His smile faded at that, as did everyone else's.

"So, Master Xehanort probably knows you're back by now, Ven," Riku started as he turned to face the blond. "Does that mean that he's going to try and use you to create the X-blade and not Steph?"

Sora intervened before Ven could speak, talking directly to the blond. "Excuse Riku for sounding a little relieved," he said sheepishly. "He just wants Steph out of trouble."

"Understandable," Ven assured him with a nod. "But anyway…I sort of doubt it. Last time Master Xehanort tried to use me, he split my heart into two. It took years for me to recover and for him to try and get his use out of me. He'll probably stick with his current plan because he believes the X-blade can be recreated without breaking the heart."

The silence in the room was, undoubtedly, more tense than it had been a few moments ago. So, it was set in stone, then. Master Xehanort was going to invest his time and effort into me so that I could create his precious weapon. But only after he gave me a Keyblade.

"I think it's clear what we should do," King Mickey said after a tense minute of silence, his voice softened. "Keep Steph here. Master Xehanort has no way of getting a hold of her while she's here."

"And in the mean time, the rest of us will go hunt Master Xehanort, Ansem, and Xemnas," Kairi finished. Hearing multiple hums, she nodded as well. "Sounds good to me."

Seriously? They all were deciding on this for me? They had to know by now that I hated being manipulated, even if it was for my own safety! "That's it, then?" I managed, eyebrows furrowing as I felt everyone's eyes land on me. Honestly, they looked surprised to see me speaking. They must have expected that I would go right along with this plan. "I'm here on the sidelines while the rest of you are fighting for your lives?"

Nobody answered me immediately. So I continued.

"You expect me to just sit here and twiddle my thumbs while you guys could possibly be **dying**?"

"We won't be dying," Terra assured me, stepping closer as he stood to the side and put a hand on my shoulder. "It's the six of us—assuming King Mickey will be staying here—against three of them."

"And whatever Heartless, Unversed, and Nobodies they summon," Ven's mumbled voice inserted.

Everyone looked over at him in surprise. "I know what Master Xehanort is capable of, more than anybody," Ven started. "He was my Master, after all."

"Ven-" Aqua tried to interrupt.

"And you guys," Ven shifted his gaze to Riku and Sora, "know what Ansem and Xemnas are capable of."

Riku's gaze went to the ground at the mention of Ansem, so his best friend spoke for the two of them. "Yeah, we know," Sora agreed. "And that's exactly why it would be best for Steph to stay here, where she's safest."

"She's definitely safe here," Ven concurred. "But what I'm saying is that whether Steph is here or not, Master Xehanort will probably get his way."

"So it's pointless to even try to protect her?" Riku growled defensively.

"No. It's pointless to try and keep Steph out of a conflict that she's already been pulled into." His response left everyone silent. "So let Steph decide what she wants to do: she can either stay here and train so she can be ready to face this when the time comes, or she can come fight with us right away. But it's her choice."

Once again, everyone's eyes went to me. I was too stunned to answer. I actually had a choice now? Lately, everything was chosen for me, by other people or by circumstance. Granted, circumstances only gave me two paths to take, but it was better than none. At the same time, I didn't know what to choose. "…How long do I have to think about it?"

Silence lingered until Kairi answered. "Until tomorrow. We all need to spend the rest of today and tonight resting up."

Not much time, but… "Okay."

"In the mean time, the castle is yours to explore," King Mickey said to the whole group. "The dining hall should have food whenever you want, and that's just down the hall. Bedrooms are down the hall in the other direction, to the right.

"Thanks, Your Majesty," multiple voices murmured.

The silence that hung in the air wasn't awkward, since people weren't just standing around. Terra squeezed my shoulder before he met the gazes of both Aqua and Ven. He jerked his head to signal for the three of them to leave and catch up, which was agreeable to my mom and Ven. The three of them walked right past me and Riku, though my mom took the time to give me a quick hug on her way out.

Next, Sora and Kairi left the room. They were a couple, so it was no surprise to me that they were heading off to be alone. That, and they were probably leaving so that Riku and I could have some privacy as well.

Knowing we wouldn't have privacy in the library where the King lingered, the two of us exited the room and headed in the direction of the dining hall. It turned out to be such an extravagant room, with chandeliers made of glass hanging on the high ceiling. The carpet was royal blue with the curtains being a gold color. This type of elegance wasn't what I expected in a world where the inhabitants were talking animals, but I supposed they were people too. Sort of.

They could make good food, that was for sure. Riku and I, apparently the only two to come to eat, were immediately served with plates of ham, mashed potatoes, and corn. It was like a Christmas dinner. Yet neither of us ate much; we just kept picking at it. The silence that lingered since our exit was tense now as we both reflected on everything that happened in the past few days.

"I'm sorry for worrying you," I said quietly as I played with my food.

"It's not your fault," he responded as he too fiddled with his corn. "But…two days…"

"Two days?"

Riku turned his head sharply and gave me a look. "Two days is how long you were missing."

My eyes grew greatly in size. _I was in the Realm of Darkness for two days. I hadn't even realized that was how long it was…No longer I was in bad shape when Ven found me._ I figured I must have been conscious much of the time; it didn't feel like I was out long when he picked me up. "I hadn't realized," I responded softly, looking back at the food.

He waited a moment before speaking again, deciding to fill me in. "After you sank into the Darkness, they all stuck around for maybe ten minutes before fleeing the scene. We haven't seen them since, not that we were really looking for them."

"You don't know, then," I said softly, swirling my mashed potatoes lightly.

"Hm?"

"Ansem was with me in the Realm of Darkness," I stated as Riku took in a sharp breath. "At least, his voice was, for a little while. He just kept telling me to accept his Darkness, that it was the only way to get out of the Realm of Darkness. Obviously I didn't give in. After that, he just left me alone, and I…I walked, for a long time, before I passed out and found myself in Twilight Town."

"Ansem…" Riku growled. His hate towards that man was apparent in just his tone; I didn't bother looking over to see the fury in his eyes. That wasn't something that I wanted to see anyway. "Figures he'd be the one taunting you. It's because of me…"

"It's because it's what Master Xehanort wants out of him," I corrected strictly. Riku couldn't place the blame on himself for this. "He's the one responsible for everything."

"You still want to fight, don't you?" he asked more softly.

I nodded faintly, staring down at my food. "I do," I confessed softly. "I know they're out of my league, but I still want to fight. I'm a part of this, you know?"

"Yeah, I know."

The conversation came to a halt at that point, with neither of us wanting to pick it up again. It was too tense. Too much to handle right now. After a few more minutes of playing with our food and eating bits and pieces of it, I decided that I didn't want to sit here any longer.

Slowly rising to my feet, I turned and set a hand on Riku's shoulder. "Let's go for a walk, okay?"

"Okay."

Though I didn't know my way around the castle, it wasn't hard to find the place that I had thought about walking to. A while back, when Riku first brought me to this castle to speak to Isabella in the Realm Between, we came out of a Gummi ship hangar and entered into a beautiful, lush garden. I still remembered…Donald and Goofy were in the courtyard as well, the latter sleeping while Donald quacked loudly to wake him up. _I wish things were still like that, _I thought as I looked around the empty courtyard. _The air is too serious now that Xehanort is back. Even this world, where he can't enter, is far more serious than it was before. _

_When will this conflict end? And how? What things will need to be sacrificed so that Xehanort doesn't destroy the worlds? What __**people **__will need to be sacrificed?_

My heart squeezed at that last thought. My footsteps came to an abrupt halt. These people were the only people I had left in my life. I couldn't survive without a single one of them.

"Riku?" I breathed from my spot.

My boyfriend, who had stopped when I stopped, turned to face me as he stood slightly in front of me. "Hm?"

There was a chance that I'd lose him. There was a chance that one of us could die, and I'd never be able to express my feelings to him again…I needed to do it now. "I think you should know…" I started softly, building up my courage. "…That I love you."

Riku's expression was one that I could read easily; the way his eyebrows shot up and his eyes grew faintly in size, I knew that he was surprised. Hopefully he was only surprised that I brought it up now, not thinking of how to let me down gently because he didn't feel the same way.

Of course, my fears of the latter died instantly when he lifted a hand and lightly brushed my soft brunette hair off my cheek. "I love you too, Steph," he said quietly. His eyes were just as sincere as his words, the honesty in their depths shining through to the surface.

A smile instantly spread on my lips. "I've been wanting to tell you for so long," I said softly, feeling Riku's hand intertwine with strands of my hair. "And I wanted to tell you now, because-" I cut off my words instantly, the smile fading away. _Because it could be my last chance to._

Sensing what I was thinking, Riku leaned down and connected his lips to mine. It came without warning and seemed…different. The kiss seemed both sad and desperate. Though he didn't want to admit it, he knew that my thinking was correct. There was no telling what awaited for us in the future. The feeling in my stomach told me that the future was dark.

But when we won (because I was certain that we would), the light of dawn would rise over the horizon. The long night of darkness would be over and people could live without fear of their lives being swallowed by despair. When we won…Things would be as they were meant to be. No matter what type of sacrifice we had to make. It would be alright in the end.

After a good minute, Riku's lips drew away from mine. His face hovered right in front of me as both of our eyes remained shut. "I know, Steph," he whispered to what I was saying before. "I've been wanting to tell you too."

"Mm." I leaned up and gave him another, brief kiss on the lips before I returned to my previous position. "Well, I'm glad you don't hate me," I said lightly as a smile started appearing on my lips. "That would have been awkward."

The soft chuckle that left Riku's lips was music to my ears. "Yeah, that would have been bad. You're lucky, you know, that I had already realized my feelings for you."

"What would you have done if I said 'I love you' and you didn't love me back?"

"I dunno, probably pretend to hear Sora causing trouble and scram to beat him up."

I laughed, opening my eyes to see Riku smiling as well. "Poor Sora, dealing with all the abuse you put him through."

"Yeah, well, he deserved it for a while." Riku opened his eyes as his smile turned to a smirk. "That rascal always used to go looking for trouble."

"Funny…When I talked to your mom, she called you **both **rascals." How I remembered a conversation from so long ago, I didn't know, nor did I care. Riku's surprised expression was worth it.

"She did, did she?" he asked in amusement. "She probably did it to make Sora look better. He was always like a son to her too."

"Or she did it because it was truth," I guessed. From what I heard, it wasn't an exaggeration. Riku really did stick his nose where it didn't belong, even recently. I imagined it was much worse when he was a child.

"Quiet," he growled teasingly.

"Make me," I dared.

Unbelieving that he could actually get me to stop teasing him, I was surprised at how he chose to make me get quiet. He smothered my lips in a kiss once again, a bit of passion behind it along with care. How could I ignore a kiss that was so genuine? I allowed him to distract me as I closed my eyes and lightly kissed him back.

When he pulled back, I was silent. "Knew I could get you to be quiet," he piped as a smirk returned to his face.

"Quiet," I said this time. But I was smiling as I said it.

"Why don't you make me be quiet?" he dared.

Giggling, I did what he dared me to do. My lips connected with his again in a kiss that would distract him. However, I didn't hold it as long as the previous kiss; I was still breathless from that one.

I withdrew first, smiling up at his face as he remained silent. "Happy now? Neither of us came out on top."

"Really? I was thinking the opposite," Riku stated as his smile was sincere instead of teasing. "I thought both of us came out on top."

Instantly, I knew he was referring to both of our confessions of love. We were both complete with each other, secure and safe. "You're right," I agreed softly. "We both won."

"Hm," Riku hummed with a small smirk, running his fingers through my hair in silence. No more words were needed right now. We had both a lighthearted moment and a romantic one. It was everything that we needed to press us forward towards the battles that waited for us.

Everything we needed and so much more.

"**Hey, lovebirds!"**

Riku groaned, turning his head to look at a balcony where Sora was standing. "You know, Riku," Sora called again. "You really should get a room."

"He's just saying that because I said that to him a while back," he muttered.

"I remember," I said back, smiling at the memory. It was right after Twilight Town was covered in Darkness. Riku had taken me to the Islands so I was safe and the four of us—that is, me, Riku, Sora, and Kairi—sat around a fire as they told me about their lives with the Keyblade. When things got more lighthearted and Sora and Kairi were having an intimate moment, Riku called them both lovebirds and told them to get a room just for the sake of embarrassing them.

"What, no sharp response, Riku?" Sora taunted.

"You're lucky you're way up there," Riku hollered back up at him. "Otherwise you'd be dead meat."

"Well, duh! Why else do you think I'm taunting you? I'm safe here!"

"You're only safe until you come back down!" Riku responded with a smirk. "Watch your back, Sora."

Startled that Riku would hunt him down for revenge later, Sora wisely disappeared from view. Probably to go find Kairi so he'd be safe for a little while.

The only thing that Riku and I did was laugh at the brunet's silliness. Though this moment didn't seem like it should be anything significant, it was. It was more happiness than we experienced in a long time.

It was exactly what we needed and then some. It proved to me that even in the darkest times, happiness could be found and savored. I'd remember that lesson in the future.


End file.
